We kicked off our 40th year still reeling from the edict issued from the de facto authorities banning women from working for non-governmental organisations like Afghanaid in Afghanistan.
This ban on women aid workers violates the rights of our female employees and makes the delivery of humanitarian and development assistance significantly more challenging than it already is. Additionally, throughout the course of this year over 70% of the population have been in humanitarian need. By attempting to force thousands more people into unemployment despite the dire economic crisis, and disrupting the ability of NGOs to most effectively deliver aid, the authorities are not only limiting women’s lives, but risking lives.
Refugees returning to Afghanistan in winter 2023.
This ban on women aid workers violates the rights of our female employees and makes the delivery of humanitarian and development assistance significantly more challenging than it already is. Additionally, throughout the course of this year over 70% of the population have been in humanitarian need. By attempting to force thousands more people into unemployment despite the dire economic crisis, and disrupting the ability of NGOs to most effectively deliver aid, the authorities are not only limiting women’s lives, but risking lives.
As an organisation that has worked with and on behalf of the people of Afghanistan for 40 years, we take pride in our community-driven agility and our history of finding principled and effective ways to overcome grave operational challenges. Through pursuing sectoral concessions, local arrangements under which women can work, and effective collaboration with local women and men, we have been able to continue to directly reach women with our assistance whilst protecting our female members of staff. We continue to implore the authorities to reverse the edict in full.
