1983 - 1987
- Afghanaid opened its office in Peshawar, Pakistan.
- Following the report ‘The Threat of Famine in Afghanistan' by Dr Frances D'Souza (commissioned by Afghanaid) our focus turned to food provision.
- Our tailoring project for disabled Afghan refugees in Peshawar began.
The Tailoring Project
"I was a farmer in Khunj village, Panjshir Valley before leaving for Pakistan in 1984. As an unregistered refugee I needed to work to keep my wife and six children, so I was very happy to train as a cloth cutter at Afghanaid." Habiburahman.
The tailoring project employed Afghan refugees - many of whom were disabled - as cloth cutters and tailors, providing much needed income for them, and school uniforms for refugee children. Each uniform was cut by full-time cutters employed at the project offices and then delivered to tailors in refugee camps in and around Peshawar. Each tailor was provided with a sewing machine, allowing him to work in his own home. In the early days Afghanaid paid the tailors a set rate on piece work, and a regular salary to the cutters. Later the project became self-financing and is still active as Afghanaid-led vocational training.
Education
After extensive research and with the help of Afghans, Afghanaid developed a series of basic textbooks in reading, writing, maths and religion, for primary schools, whilst helping to fund teachers salaries.
Food Relief
The effects of war, a collapse in agricultural production and the breakdown of distribution networks left communities in Afghanistan facing starvation if they did not receive help. Afghanaid established a pilot project to demonstrate that it was possible to help Afghans survive the immediate after-effects of bombing raids on their villages.
Teams of volunteers risked their lives to ensure that aid reached those most in need. Many families were found sheltering in caves in the mountains; others were living in shanty towns on the edge of cities; others were hiding in the bombed out remains of their homes. All were desperately short of food. Between 1985 and 1987, Afghanaid sent over £400,000 into Afghanistan, which fed over 70,000 people
A cash-for-food programme was launched, with the aim of allowing people to stay in Afghanistan, rather than becoming refugees in Pakistan.
Ambulance Service Set Up
The effects of war devastated medical facilities inside Afghanistan. Expert medical attention was available at the Pakistan border, but it was estimated that three out of every four of the wounded would die before reaching the border. Afghanaid set up an ambulance service to speed up travel times and provide a lifeline to the injured. Our ambulance fleet began operating along the southern Afghan border, bringing civilian victims of the war bombing to Peshawar for treatment. The number of casualties brought to medical aid increased steadily and in 1989, 1777 people reached Pakistan in Afghanaid's ambulances.