HeratAid for destitute Afghans

Although Ukraine is deservedly receiving a lot of attention these days, the people of Afghanistan are still suffering after surviving a bitter winter and political instability. Their economy is in freefall with massive unemployment. Government services have virtually collapsed due to an inadequate budget to pay employee salaries. The entire country has been subjected to a catastrophic drought for the last three years, resulting in widespread famine. Some Afghans have reportedly been forced to sell their young daughters to unscrupulous individuals in order to feed the rest of their family.

 

I have had a long association with Afghanistan, having first visited the country in 1968 while on international leave from Peace Corps Iran in 1968. Subsequently, I worked in Kabul in the late 70s, manufacturing clothing for export and then spent seven years in Pakistan involved with cross-border projects during the Soviet-Afghan War. I finally returned to Kabul after 9/11 to work on humanitarian and development assistance activities for USAID as well as various NGOs and institutional contractors through 2009.

 

Recently I was contacted by a trustworthy former Afghan employee of mine, Asef Nikzad, who was requesting assistance for some of the most destitute people of Herat and Badghis, which are provinces in the western part of the country near the Iran border. I was immediately intrigued since Herat has always been my favorite city in Afghanistan. Nikzad has more than twenty years of experience working on a variety of development projects in an increasingly senior capacity. He already has great familiarity with the area and long-established personal contacts with local leaders.

 

He devised a novel approach for helping the neediest people by distributing an emergency package that includes not only basic food items such as rice, cooking oil, beans, lentils, spaghetti, tomato paste and sugar, but also some essential hygiene supplies like body soap, shampoo, and laundry detergent. Initially, he screened the potential candidates with the assistance of local elders giving preference to widows, disabled persons (physical and mental) and households without a full-time breadwinner. These supplies should last up to two months, depending on the family size.

 

 

After the preliminary needs assessment, he began the distributions including to some internally displaced persons from the neighboring province of Badghis, which has been particularly hard hit since it is primarily rural with widespread crop failures.

 

 

I financed the first round through a personal contribution of $1000 to test the efficacy of this system. I transferred the funds through Western Union, which worked surprisingly well since he already had personal contacts within the bank. Operational costs will be minimal, with most of the money used to support the beneficiaries. No expensive office buildings or expat salaries are necessary ensuring maximum cost-effectiveness. The initial results were so successful that I am now enthusiastically supporting this public fundraiser and hope you do too.

As an added incentive, a photo of a family receiving assistance and a brief bio will be provided upon request to donors giving a contribution of $50 or more since that is the approximate value of each emergency kit. You can use the Contact button under the Organizer name on the GoFundMe page to inform me.

 

I sincerely request that you not overlook impoverished Afghans in their dire hour of need. Please share this fundraising appeal on social media or directly with your friends and family who also care about the fate of Afghanistan.