Quality Primary Education to Southern Afghanistan (Kandahar)

Current phase: 2008–2010
Project budget: $1.5 million

This is a joint project, with the Netherlands funding activities in the province of Uruzgan and CIDA funding activities in the province of Kandahar. There are two components to this project. The first is increased access to education for 4,000 out-of-school children who will receive accelerated learning classes to bring them to a level where they can pass exams based on the formal school curriculum. Once the children have passed those exams, they will be enrolled into appropriate grades in formal schools through an agreement with the Afghan Ministry of Education.

The second component is to improve the quality of formal education. Eight formal schools, an additional 4,000 children, and school faculty will be assisted to help create a learning environment where children, especially those returning back to formal school, will be welcomed and receive quality education. Children already in formal school will also benefit from their teachers being better trained in such disciplinary practices as alternatives to corporal punishment, improved school structures (water, sanitation, or building repair based on the needs of the school) and child participation in student groups.