Education

Our Work

Afghanistan is home to one of the youngest populations in the world, making quality education critical to boosting economic growth and democratic development. Yet, cultural expectations and years of conflict and instability impede equal access to education, especially for women and girls. USAID strengthens institutions so that all students–from primary school to university and from urban to rural– have an opportunity to receive a quality education.

Major Highlights

Since 2008, USAID has helped increase access to education for three million Afghan girls, many for the first time in their lives. Thanks in part to USAID, student enrollment grew from 900,000 male students in 2001 to more than 9.5 million students, 39 percent of whom are girls, in 2020.

Basic Education

Through the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund, USAID helped make education more accessible to students by improving school infrastructure in rural areas in 17 provinces, rehabilitating existing schools, and strengthening community-based education.

To increase the pool of female teachers and extend learning opportunities to girls in rural areas, USAID provided two-year scholarships to nearly 11,500 women, giving them the opportunity to attend teacher training colleges.

Extending the reach of the Ministry of Education, our 8,440 community-based education classes give 171,000 students, more than half of whom are girls, a place to learn.

Higher Education

USAID is helping Afghans pursue higher education and vocational training opportunities that will equip them with the knowledge and skills they need to meaningfully contribute to the workforce.

To connect colleges and universities with the needs of the labor market, USAID has helped develop 31 new undergraduate and graduate degree programs.

Current Projects:

• Education Quality Reform in Afghanistan (EQRA)
• Textbook II Printing and Distribution Project
• Higher Education Development Project (HEDP)
• Capacity Building Activity (CBA)
• Afghan Children Read Program
• American University of Afghanistan (AUAF)
• Increasing Access to Basic Education and Gender Equality (CBE)
• Promote - Scholarship
• Strengthening Education in Afghanistan II (SEA II)
• Global Partnership for Education (GPE)
• University Support & Workforce Development Program (USWDP)

Completed Projects:

• Textbook Printing and Distribution
• Education Quality Improvement Program (EQUIP II)
• Early Grade Reading Survey (EGRS)
• Assessment of Learning Outcomes and Social Effects of Community-Based Education (ALSE)
• Afghan eQuality Alliances (AeQA)
• Afghanistan Primary Education Program (APEP)
• Afghanistan Technical Vocational Institute (ATVI)
• America's Rapid Response to the Education Needs of Afghanistan
• Building Education Support Systems for Teachers (BESST)
• Design for Ghazi Boys and Kabuli Sardar Girls High Schools
• Establishment of Management Services for the American University of Afghanistan
• Faculties of Education
• Higher Education Project (HEP-2)
• Higher Education Project (HEP)
• International School of Kabul (ISK)
• Kabul Schools Program
• Learning for Community Empowerment Program (LCEP-2)
• Literacy & Community Empowerment Program
• National Men’s Dormitory
• Partnership for Advancing Community Education in Afghanistan (PACE-A)
• Rehabilitation of Women's Dorms - University of Kabul
• Skills Training for Afghan Youth (STAY+)
• Special Initiatives in Education
• Strengthening Education in Afghanistan (SEA) Project
• Textbook Printing
• Youth Empowerment Project