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The Afghan Ministries of Education, Health and Women's Affairs and USAID/REACH initiate $4.3M "Learning for Life" program to qualify rural women for training as health workers and midwives Kabul, February 17, 2004 - At a ceremony on February 17, 2004, held at the Afghan Institute of Health Sciences in Kabul, Afghan Deputy Minister of Education, Mr. Khaliq; Minister of Health, Dr. Sohaila Siddiq; and Minister of Women's Affairs, Dr. Habibia Sorabi, each signed an agreement to a Memorandum of Understanding with USAID to undertake "Learning for Life," a two-year, $4.3 million, health-focused literacy program. Using accelerated learning techniques, the program aims to increase literacy levels among rural Afghan women in order to qualify them for training as Community Health Workers and midwives. US Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad attended and spoke at the event, presided over by Acting USAID Mission Director, Robert Wilson. Working closely with provincial literacy departments and other local groups and provincial officials, the Afghan Ministry of Health and Departments of Literacy in both the MOE and MOWA will coordinate with USAID/REACH in planning and implementing the Learning for Life program in 13 rural provinces, where it will be integrated with existing USAID/REACH-funded NGO health initiatives. The accelerated literacy program will use health-focused learning materials designed to impact the high Afghan maternal and child mortality rate by increasing the capacity of a large number of women to improve health and hygiene practices in their own families and rural communities while at the same time raising their literacy levels to grade equivalencies necessary for further training. With Afghan female literacy at an estimated 21%, and most literate women living in urban areas, few rural women qualify for the academic training needed to serve as healthcare providers in their own villages. Learning for Life estimates some 3900 women will qualify for training as CHW's and 1741 for training as midwives. |
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