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In a country where there has been so much instability over the last 25 years, it is little surprise that long-term planning is an alien concept to most people. “War, drought and more war have affected the country’s education system and meant that there are not enough trained people.
“My task is to develop the local staff’s potential and encourage them to take on managerial responsibilities. I look forward to being able to train them so that we can simply send funds over for them to carry out the projects.”
When asked what frustrates her most about the situation in Afghanistan, Mo points to the fact that the country’s plight seems to have been forgotten by the West, just two years after the country dominated the world news.
A quarter of a century of conflict and drought has left the country littered with landmines and lacking basic sanitation, roads and buildings. And aid is urgently needed to cater for the influx of returning refugees (approximately 1.8m returned in 2002). Most return to the cities, where the lack of infrastructure and drinking water pose a huge health risk. Those that do try to return to their homes usually become involved in land disputes, fuelling instability and conflict. Yet, as history has shown, stability in Afghanistan is of crucial importance to the West as well as to Asia. Mo hopes her contribution can be of some help in the lengthy process of reconstructing Afghanistan. She’s optimistic, but keen to remind us that more money and more attention is needed to stabilise this country.
-Because of the potential dangers to foreigners in Afghanistan, we have not used Mo’s real surname.
by Maria Hanlon
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