Swedish Development Agency Pledges Support for Education in Afghanistan

The meeting was organized by Swedish Embassy in Afghanistan in coordination with SCA to discuss girl’s education, curriculum reform, and challenges in the education sector. The SIDA’s Director-General Mrs. Carin Jämtin, SCA’s leadership in Afghanistan Mr. Daniel Madhani, Ahmad Khalid Fahim, Jens Rosback, education in charges Mr. Tahir Ismat and Charles Olaka, Deputy Minister of Education Dr. Ataullah Wahidyar, UNESCO’s Country Director Jordan Naidoo and the Afghanistan Swedish Embassy representatives Ms. Lotta Westerberg attended the meeting.

Addressing the meeting, Mrs. Carin Jämtin thanked all the participants for the good progress and achievements of the past years in the field of education. She also stressed maintaining and fostering these achievements.

She pointed out the lack of schools, teachers, and trained teachers, lack of access to girls’ schools, insecurity, early marriages, bad traditions, and poverty as the main problems in the education of Afghanistan.

Dr. Wahidiyar, Deputy Minister of Education, called for more assistance from the SIDA.

“Education should be considered as a top priority in development assistance.”

” In the event that a peace deal is reached in Afghanistan, we should all anticipate a surge in student enrolment in schools,” said Charles Olaka, Senior Education Specialist at the SCA’s education program.

“Through the implementation of Coaching Classes, SCA provides girls and women, who had earlier dropped out of school for whatever reason, an opportunity to resume their education and enroll into the formal education system,” he added.

Adding to the above-mentioned, Jordan Naidoo, Director of the UNESCO Office called for more investment in the training of teachers for quality education.

“We continue to support and focus on educating girls and providing them with a better learning environment,” the Director of SIDA said.