Farm to Market: Seeding Afghan Women Entrepreneurs
Example: Walk us through a specific example(s) of how this solution makes a difference; include its primary activities.
Impact: What is the impact of the work to date? Also describe the projected future impact for the coming years.
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Founding Story
Kate
McLetchie
Global Partnership for Afghanistan
, Kabul
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2004
Since 2004, GPFA has launched or enhanced 30,000 farm enterprises, including 9,300 women-owned. In the more than 2,500 villages where GPFA has worked, GPFA's insistence on creating business opportunities for women has been accepted and increasingly supported by male leaders. Nevertheless, it has become clear that a special focus on strengthening the earning power of women is critical to the country’s future. Empowering rural women to increase their incomes enhances their communities' security, stability and determination to discourage extremism. More children go to school, and other women are inspired to emulate the women role models they know. GPFA’s current programs support over 900 women farm producers, wholesalers, and small business owners. This project will help take this work to the next level and move even more women up the agricultural value chain.
Potential barriers include insecurity and uncertainty surrounding the withdrawal of NATO troops and the April 2014 elections. However, GPFA has a reputation for our ability to work in insecure locations and uncertain environments, as our past activities demonstrate. Our strategy of engagement with multiple levels of the government and local Shura Councils ensures the project's acceptance by everyone in and around the community. Our staff is Afghan, many of whom come from the communities where we work, and therefore we do not have the same security concerns we would with an expatriate staff.
This project will focus on provinces where we are currently working (mainly Kapisa, Parwan, and outside of Kabul), but can be easily replicated and scaled-up throughout the country. The project also has a huge multiplier effect meaning that for every woman we train and support she becomes a role model and informal teacher for many other women in her community.
A $25,000 grant from Ashoka would help move us closer toward our initial goal of supporting 20 women entrepreneurs and give us a credible boost to leverage funds from other donors. Additional partnerships with Afghan universities, local businesses, and other NGOs will augment the financial support this project receives. In addition, Afghan women teach other women what they have learned, dramatically multiplying the impact of our direct support.
GPFA Founder and Board Chair Dana Freyer’s first job as assistant to the Afghan ambassador to the UN was when she “fell in love with the Afghan people.” She still recalls the dense forests and lush agricultural landscapes she and her husband found when they visited the country for the first time in 1972. When they returned again in 2003, “I was aghast at what I saw,” Dana recalls. “Everywhere farms, fields and trees were completely devastated.” In the wake of 9/11, Dana decided to do something to help bring Afghanistan back. Though many organizations were focused on building infrastructure, none were doing something much simpler: planting trees and supporting farmers. In 2004, GPFA was born.
Current partners include: Women's Empowerment Fund, U.S. Department of State; Ministry of Women's Affairs, Afghanistan; Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock, Afghanistan; Ministry of Economy, Afghanistan; Ministry of Education, Afghanistan; Canadian Women 4 Women in Afghanistan; Mercy Corp; MADERA; European Commission; and local community development councils.
Creating partnerships with complementary businesses that will help your beneficiaries have more impact - such as creating a daycare center that supports a businesses
Comments
Great work you are doing, I highly commend you on this and it is truly scalable not only in Afghanistan but in other countries throughout the world. The sustainability part requires abit of work on how you as an organization remain sustainable without donations, maybe in part look at a payback scheme from these women to cover the time spent on training and giving access, otherwise it is very sustainable for the women and once again great job
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