Media & Culture of Peace (2000-2001)

Project Partners

Afghan University in Peshawar

Afghan University demonstrated its competence and reliability by superbly organizing the Peace Education workshop for Afghan politicians and leaders in February 2001. Facilitated by the TRANSCEND and McMaster teams, this five-day workshop brought together more than 100 Afghan politicians, intellectuals and tribal leaders to discuss etiology of and peaceful solutions to the Afghan conflict. Variety of approaches for reconciliation and hatred-prejudice reduction were also discussed.

Afghan University was established in December 1998 as an amalgamation of five Afghan University that were closed by the Pakistani government in early 1998. Despite the fact that the number of students inherited from the five former Afghan universities far exceeded its capacity, the academic staff has been striving to ensure that the new Afghan University becomes a model of quality education. Keeping in view the basic and the most urgent needs of Afghanistan, the university provides trained human resources, which will ensure the rebuilding of Afghanistan on sound footing. The faculty and management of Afghan University have firmly resolved that: a) The university has to be and will remain non-political and purely academic. b) The university will be open to all Afghan refugees in Pakistan, irrespective of their ethnic and regional background c) The graduates of the university (both male and female) will render service in Afghanistan. 

Contact Information: Afghan Univeristy Peshawar, Jamrud Road, Board, Gul Abad, Peshawar, Pakistan, U.P.O. Box 806 E-mail: auppsh@brain.net.pk  


Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (Education Section)

Swedish Committee for Afghanistan (SCA), Education Section supports 300 primary schools inside Afghanistan and provides teacher training and school supplies throughout Afghanistan. SCA hosted and funded the first McMaster Peace Education Workshop in March 2000 in Peshawar. As a response to the request by participants, McMaster’s Center for Peace Studies developed the Peace Manual and Storybooks. Translated versions of this manual will be field-tested and put to use in the SCA schools inside Afghanistan.

Contact Information: Information Unit, Swedish Committee for Afghanistan, GPO Box 689 Peshawar, Pakistan E-mail: infosca@brain.net.pk 


Cooperation for Peace and Unity

Founded in October 1996, Co-operation for Peace and Unity (CPAU) was born in response to the desire of the people of Afghanistan for an end to the war which has devastated the country for more than two decades. The aim of CPAU is to work for the promotion of knowledge and awareness of peace, social justice and human rights as the cornerstone for the future development of Afghanistan. Through direct encouragement and participation in active peace building, CPAU hopes to contribute to the creation of a viable alternative to the war, as the first, but crucial, step towards building a lasting peace. CPAU is a network of Afghan individuals dedicated to building peace in Afghanistan, and working together to reach this goal. CPAU is based upon the recognition that only the Afghan people themselves can bring real and lasting peace to Afghanistan. However, because of the physical, human, and social devastation brought about by the war, the resources needed for the development and future construction of the country are beyond those presently available inside Afghanistan. CPAU provides training opportunities abroad for its resource persons and, since 1996, more than one hundred indiviuals from NGO's, UN agencies, Government institutions, and people from all levels of Afghan society have participated and received training in CPAU courses. 

Contact Information: Ahmad Fahim Hakim, Programme Co-ordinator, CPAU 2-Rehman Baba Road, University Town, UPO Box 1084, Peshawar, Pakistan Email: acbaar@radio.psh.brain.net.pk afahim@brain.net.pk 

Sanayee Institute of Education & Learning

SIEAL has been developed from a small educational center named "Kabul English language Center" (KELC) with 12 students and nothing in hand. This organization was established in 1990 with the chief aim of promoting the level of knowledge of war stricken people of Afghanistan. Due to a rapid expansion of its activities, it was decided in 1997 that Kabul English Lanuage Center be expanded to an educational insititue and start functioning as an Afghan non-governmental, non-political and non-profitable organization (NGO). At present, more than 1400 (male) and 700 (female) students are benefiting directly from SIEAL's various educational programs and thousands more benefit indirectly from its publication programs such as monthly papers, monthly magazine, books and libraries. SIEAL has been registered with the Ministry of Planning of Afghanistan and Commissioner for Afghan Refugees in NWFP of Pakistan. SIEAL has also acquired ACBAR membership. In addition SIEAL's welfare committee has been raising funds from local resoucres to carry out limited charity work in Afghanistan aiming to reach the most vulnerable sections of the Afghan people. 

Aims and Objectives: - To promote the level of knowledge of Afghan youth through educational programs and publications. - To promote the voactional skills of the Afghan youth through holding vocational training courses. - To assist the most needy section of the Afghan people through relief programs. - To disseminate peace messages through publication of magazine for Afghan children. 


Research and Advisory Council of Afghanistan

The Research and Advisory Council of Afghanistan (RACA) is working for unity among mujahideen groups and is also trying to bring together Afghan researchers and academics to develop resources on Conflict transformation. From 1998-20001 RACA has prepared ten training workshops for 280 highschool teachers and NGO's staff (with 50% female participants). Most of the participants rated the content very highly and they found the workshops very effective and very powerful. RACA has started to print the journal "SALAAM" to disseminate the ideas of conflict transformation, peace-building, developing peace capacities, reducing violence and increasing awareness and promoting empowerment and community development. RACA has qualified and professional staff and they strongly believe in cooperation and collaboration. RACA is working to build close relationships with all those organizations that work for real peace building in Afghanistan and the rest of the world. 

Contact Information: 43, E1 phase I, Hayalabad, Peshawar Email: pcsiua@psh.brain.net.pk 

Care - Afghanistan

CARE's involvement with education in Afghaninstan started with a "Pilot Primary Home-School Project", which was initiated in 1994 and funded by CARE, UNICEF and the Canada Fund. This project opened 52 schools in Paktia province, with 694 students (boys and girls) now completing grade 2. A total of 1,570 students were active in these schools. CARE provided teacher training (8 courses sine 1995), textbooks and other supplies, using BEFARE books. The communities provided support to these schools in the form of fees (all teacher salaries) and the formation of village education committees. In late 1997 CARE initiated the Community Organization for Primary Education (COPE) project, which aims to establish 125 commuinty mangaged schools. This will provide education for approximately 1,700 girls and 3,300 boys. COPE is funded by DFID and UNOCAL. The COPE project builds ont he experiences of the pilot project (in Khost, as well as in Ghazni and Logar), and is based on the same philosophy of community involvement. To date, CARE community schools provide grade 1-5 education for 2,150 children, of which 34% are girls. 

Contact Information: CARE Afghanistan, House #6 Park Lane, Park Road, University Town, UPO Box 926, Peshawar, Pakistan Email: afghan@care.org  

Afghanistan Women Council (AWC)

AWC has facilitated workshops on hatred and prejudice reductions for their female schoolteachers. Pashto and Dari versions of the Peace Manual and Storybooks will be field tested and used at the schools run by AWC in Peshawar, Pakistan.

AWC was established in 1993 to achieve the following objectives: 

To secure civil and social rights of women based on the principles of Islam and culture and tradtions of Afghanistan. 

To create understanding, cooperation and perfect harmony among the Afghan women on issues of national and international importance. 

To secure the proper place of women in the Afghan society. 

To encourage and promote education of Afghan women at the national level. 

To improve the social, economic, health and cultural conditions of the Afghan women. -To establish friendly relations with similar organizations in Muslim and Non-Muslim countries. 

Contact Information: Ms. Fatana Ishaq Gailani, GPO Box 1215, Peshawar, Pakistan Email: gillani@ awc.pwt.sdnpk.undp.org 

Afghan Health and Development Services - Afghanistan

AHDS is a non-profit, non-governmental, non-political organization founded by Afghans with expertise and training in the fields of health, education and development. Since its establishment in April 1990, AHDS has been involved in the rehabilitation of Afghanistan's health sector and the provision of comprehensive Primary Health Care services to the needy people of Afghanistan. The Organization has developed considerably, having grown from operating 8 health facilities with 30 staff members in 1990/91, to running 38 health facilities (of various categories) with over 250 staff members. AHDS has a proven record in building and administering health facilities by dedicating itself mainly to the provision of Primary Health Care servcies, as well as rehabilitation of ruined health facilities and the construction of new ones in different locations in Afghanistan. AHDS has so far estalished 56 health facilites including a Regional Training Center in the following provinces: Logar, Nangarhar, Wardak, Kandahar and Urozgan. The overall objective of the AHDS Integrated Community Based Primary Health Care program is to reduce morbidity and mortality rates with special focus on mother and child by increased accessibilty to curative, preventive and promotive care through cost effective, affordable Primary Health Care interventions. The total beneficiaries in the target districts with PHC/EPI activity are estimated to be 1,056,905 with the following breakdown: Children < 5 years 176,609 Women 15-45 years: 197,430 Others 682,866