USAID Pledges $216 million for Afghan Women’s Empowerment Program

The United States Agency for International Development (USAID) has pledged $216 million for a major women’s empowerment program for Afghanistan, Promoting Gender Equity in National Priority Programs (“Promote”).

According to USAID, the goal of the Promote programs is to advance opportunities for Afghan women who can serve as political, private sector, or civil society leaders. Promote will increase women’s contributions to Afghanistan’s development by boosting female participation in the economy, helping women gain business and management skills, strengthening women’s rights groups, and increasing the number of women in decision making positions within the Afghan government.

Promote will engage approximately 75,000 women between the ages of 18 and 30 and will consist of four major components: 

1. Women in the Economy: designed to significantly increase women’s contribution to economic growth;
2. Women’s Rights Groups and Coalitions: designed to strengthen women’s rights groups and coalitions;
3. Women in Government: designed to achieve a critical mass of women in government decision-making bodies;
4. Women’s Leadership Development: designed to ensure that women have the leadership and management skills they need to be effective participants in every sector of society.

USAID emphasizes the link between women's empowerment and security, economic opportunity, effective governance, and social development. Promote is the largest gender program in the world and will serve as a significant contribution to the empowerment of women in Afghanistan.

Photo courtesy of DVIDSHUB.