US-based charity provides vocational training, hope to Afghans in Kandahar and Herat

HERAT, Afghanistan -- More than 1,600 young Afghans are learning vocational skills through a US-funded programme in Herat and Kandahar provinces.

More than half of the participants are female.

The US State Department on August 3 launched the capacity-building and job training programme, implemented by US-based charity Mercy Corps.

The six-month-long programme comes as Afghanistan grapples with rising unemployment and youth emigration.

The US State Department has provided $3 million to fund the project.

Young Afghans will acquire skills in 18 professions in six centres in Herat and Kandahar, said Jack Byrne, Mercy Corps country director in Afghanistan.

"We aim to build a skilled workforce for the long term, and this project will not be short-term," he said. "We hope to see all participating trainees under this project enter the labour market as skilled workers in the coming 9 to 10 months."

"The main purpose of the project is to help the youth find jobs and support their families," he added.

Mercy Corps will soon start four other projects aimed at providing drinking water and supporting agriculture across rural areas in Afghanistan with funding support from the US government, said Byrne.

Hope for a better future

The training offered by Mercy Corps has given participants, especially Afghan women, hope for a better future.

Bibi Gul Nabizada, 32, is learning to weave rugs in a Mercy Corps training centre in Herat city. She has learned the basics of weaving over the past month and aspires to make high quality rugs after graduating from the six-month course.

She said she was unemployed before joining the rug-weaving course but is now hopeful and excited about her future.

"I want to learn weaving rugs professionally so that I can produce quality rugs, serve my society and support Afghanistan's rug industry," she said.

"My husband is unemployed, and our household economy is fragile. I want to earn an income and support my family," Nabizada said.

Sadaf Yousofi, 24, is learning embroidery at a Mercy Corps vocational training centre in Herat city.

She said she has regained hope for her life and is motivated to attend classes every day.

"I was a second-year student at Herat University's faculty of science last year," she said. "However, I could not continue my studies and had to drop out because of economic challenges. I had to stay home and coped with numerous difficulties after leaving the university."

"My mental health has improved and I am motivated now that I attend the embroidery class," Yousofi said. "I want to become an embroidery instructor in the future and pass on the skills to other women and girls."

Providing the opportunity for Afghan women to learn skills is very effective and valuable amid the tough circumstances in the country, said Zahra Mohammadi, 21, who like Yousofi is learning embroidery in Herat city.

"I was unemployed and felt exhausted at home," she said. "However, now that I am learning embroidery, I feel empowered and hope to revolutionise my life."

"I have a high school diploma, but I could not prepare for the Kankor (university entrance) exam or start going to the university because of economic problems," she said.

"I am happy that I can support my family," she added.

Averting youth migration

Almost half of the participants in vocational skill courses supported by Mercy Corps are young men, and many say they have reconsidered previous immigration plans after participating in the courses.

Qasim Hajati, 29, a resident of Guzara district in Herat province, recently joined a class to learn how to repair mobile phones at Mercy Corps training centre in Herat city.

Since starting the course last month, he said he has already learned the basics of repairing smartphones.

"I was suffering from unemployment and had decided to migrate to Iran illegally. However, I revisited my decision after I started attending the training course," he said.

"Many young people decided to go to neighbouring countries to work before joining the vocational skill course," he said. "This is an incredible initiative and has prevented many young people from fleeing ... abroad."

Hajati said he felt very happy that he decided to stay with his family and is hopeful that he will soon find a job and earn money after completing the vocational course.

Sajid Haidari, 29, said he escaped unemployment when he enrolled in the blacksmithing class at the Mercy Corps centre in Herat city.

"I previously worked at the Herat Customs Department but lost my job almost a year ago," he said. "I was fed up with being jobless and decided to go overseas. I am so happy that I enrolled in the project and that I was not forced to migrate."

"I call on the international community to support Afghan youth so that they are not forced to go to neighbouring countries to find a job via illegal and dangerous routes," Haidari said.

"Unfortunately, thousands of our youth have been forced to leave the country because of unemployment," he added.