PHILANTHROPY AUSTRALIA PRESENTATION FEB 18 2014
By Dr Nouria Salehi OAM & Ms Bianca Pilla
 Introduction to AADO
 Education in Afghanistan 2002 – 2014
 AADO’s Current Programs
 Financial Stewardship
 Key objectives 2014 - 2016
INTRODUCTION TO AADO
‘Education is vital to reducing poverty and creating sustainable
development for communities in Afghanistan’
 AADO founded by Dr Nouria Salehi
in 2002
 AADO provides education and
training programs for thousands of
disadvantaged Afghans across 10
provinces in Afghanistan
 AADO is committed to supporting
sustainable development through a
‘community development’ model
INTRODUCTION TO AADO
AADO’s Community Development Approach

The work of AADO is guided by the principle that education is one of the key
cornerstones in ensuring poverty reduction and sustainable development

AADO delivers its development programs in collaboration with local Afghan
partners via close-knit networks

All AADO programs are identified and developed through consultation and
participation with local communities, and endorsed by, Afghan regional and
provincial leaders and village elders

Recognition of Afghan culture and traditions is integral to the design and
delivery of AADO’s programs

AADO does not pay bribes
EDUCATION IN AFGHANISTAN 2002 – 2014:
PROGRESS & CHALLENGES
Children Studying in Tents 2002
Girls studying in Dawuzdai Primary 2012
EDUCATION IN AFGHANISTAN 2002 – 2014:
PROGRESS & CHALLENGES
Key statistics- progress in Education

From 2002 – 2012 enrolment in general
education increased from 900,000, including
50,000 female students (5.5%), to 7.3 million,
including 2.4 million female students (33%)

Since 2002 the number of schools increased from
6,040 to 14,456; and the number of teachers
nearly tripled to 181,640- including 32 % female
teachers in 2012
Source: Ministry of Education, Education Interim Plan, 2012
AFGHANISTAN 2002 - 2014
Key statistics- challenges in Education
 Only 30 % of Afghanistan's 181,640 teachers have
post-secondary or higher qualification
 While 1.9 million girls are enrolled in primary
school (grades 1 - 6) 416,854 are enrolled in
secondary school (7 - 9) and 122,480 in high
school (10 - 12). As girls get older, the gender gap
widens
AADO’S ACHIEVEMENTS 2002- 2014
In 12 years of operation AADO has trained:

1050 Rural women and girls in comprehensive life skills training

1393 in-service science and mathematics teachers, in up-dated theoretical,
practical and pedagogical skills and methods

624 tertiary and secondary Master science teacher trainers, in up-dated
theoretical, practical and pedagogical skills, and training of trainers curriculum

47 Street working boys aged 14-18 in trade-level carpentry and joinery

80 year 12 students in ‘a step to tertiary education’
AADO has completed the following capital works projects:

Installed 7 deep-well water pumps servicing over 20,000 students

Built a community centre in Dawuzdai village Qarabagh, servicing 5 villages
AADO’S CURRENT PROGRAMS
Master Science Teacher Training
Training Master Science Teacher Trainers to modernize learning and improve
educational outcomes for Afghan students
Life Skills Project
Empowering rural women and girls through education in literacy, numeracy, health,
hygiene, life skills & vocational training
Carpentry Technical and Vocational Education & Training
Providing trade level skills to street-working boys to enable safer, stronger futures
Humanitarian Relief
Creating a safe and healthy environment for internally displaced people
MASTER SCIENCE TEACHER TRAINING
Many Afghan educators have little or no formal training and are therefore unable to teach their
students to the standard required for higher education. The poor quality of education follows through
to universities. New teachers are graduating with no ability to teach practical experiments, and so the
cycle continues.
Under AADO’s previous in-service teacher training program, 1393 Afghan teachers were re-trained
helping approximately 64,828 senior secondary students gain a better future.
A physics trainee says that “Six months of receiving training in AADO was like a doing degree in
university for me. According to my experiences there will be so many changes on my students’
education.”
THE LIFE SKILLS PROJECT
“The biggest point of changing my life is becoming aware of my rights and now I can defend my life
and my rights too. Before I didn’t know about my rights, but by being a member of AADO’s training
course…I became very powerful.” Says Magul.
When you educate a woman like Magul you create communities with the potential for lasting
economic and social growth.
Magul says “Now I feel happy because my life condition is better than before, and I am able to send
my children to school. I am so grateful to AADO for providing of life skill training course.”
CARPENTRY TECHNICAL VOCATIONAL
EDUCATION & TRAINING
Atsmatullah was selling cigarettes and collecting scrap metal on the streets of Kabul before he was
accepted into AADO’s carpentry project. He couldn’t afford schooling and wanted to help pull his
family out of poverty.
Afghanistan’s street-working boys are some of the most vulnerable people in the country. Daily they
are exposed to extreme risks and dangers in order to provide for their families.
“Everyone likes to help their family to get rid of poverty, and I never dreamed of how I would do this,
but now I am learning something from carpentry and going to school. Now it is possible that I could
reach that dream.” Says Atsmatullah
HUMANITARIAN RELIEF
When you’re living in an illegal displacement camp, daily life is a struggle.
Access to water is an enormous problem as is a lack of proper sanitation. Disease spreads quickly in
camps with small children often being the worst affected. Work is hard to find, and most families do
not get enough to eat. Constantly worrying about feeding your family, the threat of eviction and dealing
with the trauma of displacement takes a toll.
AADO provides around 250 families with blankets and food during winter and times of severe crisis,
and school books and solar lights to enable women and children access to education.
FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP
AADO Revenue
9% 10%
16%
4%
0%
61%
Public donations
Philanthropic grants
Government grants
Fundraising events
Gifts in-kind
Other income
AADO’s current donors and partners include: The Planet Wheeler Foundation,
DAK foundation, Portland House Foundation, Cabrini Mission, and Cubit Family
Foundation
FINANCIAL STEWARDSHIP
Operating Expenses
2%
1%
Programs
Fundraising
97%
Accountability &
Administration
KEY OBJECTIVES 2014 - 2016
 Secure funding to launch the Sustainable Rural Livelihoods Project,
training 720 smallholder farmers in horticulture, focused on female
headed households, over 3 years;
 Secure funding to train a further 400 Master Science Teacher Trainers
across a further 8 provinces in Afghanistan, over 2 years;
 Introduce more marketing activities focused at building a wider public
funding and supporter base in Australia;
 Establish a formal volunteer framework and employ a part-time a
volunteer coordinator, to harness the skills and in-kind contributions of
volunteers;
 Lobby the Australian government for increased funding opportunities for
local, grassroots NGOs working in Afghanistan.