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| Afghanistan | |
| Afghan aid groups vow to stay on | |
| 2014-01-02 | |
| As Nato forces pack up and shift out of Afghanistan, aid groups are determined to avoid following them, but they face rising militant attacks and uncertainty over funding. Projects working on everything from clean water to skateboarding parks sprung up in Afghanistan after the Taleban were ousted in 2001. Now, many Afghans fear that the end of the Nato military mission next year will see a pullout of all but the most resilient programmes, putting at risk the fragile gains of the last 12 years.
“Fortunately for us, the NGOs (non-governmental organisations) have stayed so far. We still do not have drinking water and irrigation for our fields is a major problem, so we still need help.” Among the aid groups to have stayed in Kapisa is MRCA (Medical Refresher Courses for Afghans), a French organisation established in 1985 that runs health programmes in several provinces. In Darwazagi village, nestled below rocky cliffs, MRCA’s Afghan staff distribute drugs to treat bronchitis as the bitter winter takes hold. Its chief of mission in Afghanistan, Valerie Docher, said it was determined to keep helping some of the country’s most vulnerable people despite 2013 being the deadliest year for aid workers since the Taliban fell. This year more than 30 aid workers have been killed, including six Afghan employees of the aid group ACTED, who were shot dead last month while working on rural development projects in the northern province of Faryab. “There is no single source of problems,” said Docher. “It is a multitude of challenges we face, and it is the variety that makes it so difficult to manage. “If the militants really want to attack us, they can do so tomorrow morning. They know where we are.” The Aid Workers Security Database recorded 164 attacks against NGOs worldwide, with 79 in Afghanistan, making it the world’s most dangerous country even in comparison to South Sudan, Syria and Somalia. Assassination, kidnap, robbery and the ongoing war are some of the many threats — and experts believe the violence is increasing away from the eyes of the international community. | |
| Posted by:Steve White |
| #1 Good spot for them. Now if we could just get CAIR, USAID, etc. to participate. |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2014-01-02 09:53 |