Women for Afghan Women



	The Lana-E-Omid (Haven of Hope) Project A Project of Women for Afghan Women Spring 2006 Based on their collective experience and diverse areas of expertise, the project team has drafted the components of a program that will support Afghan women who have decided to leave an abusive situation. These components include systematic ways to: I. Provide Early Assistance • Release distressed women from prisons • Facilitate interventions for women in at-risk family settings • Offer safe houses for women in immediate danger II. Provide for Life-Stabilizing Shelter • Assure holistic trauma care for abused women and children • Provide a homelike setting for a period of healing and learning • Connect women to basic education, job skills, and independent living skills III. Provide for Community Re-integration • Offer a viable, life-long work/life structure • Facilitate reunification with family whenever possible • Engage independent women in community life at every opportunity The project team believes that women who experience life in this safe place and elect to participate in a progression of healing and learning activities will in turn share their strengths and talents with their community. The very women who are now in despair may be the hope of Afghanistan’s future. The Next Steps: A Feasibility Study The task ahead of Women for Afghan Women is ambitious on many levels. These are four of the many challenges: • Establishing a program that is comprehensive enough to succeed will require experts from many fields during the model building process. • Creating a program that protects Afghan women and encourages their freedom of choice without isolating them from the broader culture will be groundbreaking. • Raising the funds to replicate the program on a scale that matches the need will be a major initiative requiring professional development of staff and a network of supporters. • Implementing the program at a pace that addresses the urgent needs of Afghan women will be challenging in Afghanistan, where the infrastructure remains very damaged. These challenges and many others have made it clear to the project team that a feasibility study is needed. Part I: Field Study The study will begin with a field study of programs and services that exist for women in Afghanistan today. The field study will be conducted by WAW’s staff, who will be in Afghanistan for 12 weeks to gather data. Part II: Research Simultaneously, a team of volunteers will be conducting secondary research in all the major programming and service components. Following the secondary research, the volunteers will conduct phone interviews with experts to fill in the gaps and seek advice in areas where the needs of Afghan women may be outside the parameters of the existing research. Part III: Building the Model With the field study data and the research in hand, the project team will build the model and develop steps for a pilot to begin in 2007. The finished product will be a detailed model for all components of the Lana-E-Omid project. The model will provide services in villages, towns, and communities within an urban area. The study will include client psychographics, client demographics and client sourcing systems, facilities and equipment, programming and staffing, awareness initiatives, fund raising for start-up, transportation and security, multi-organizational partnerships, international business practices, cultural context and sustainable operational budget. What Can You Do? Opportunity 1: The field study in Afghanistan will cost $50,000. These funds are all being raised through individual donations and will be listed as a match when proposals for major grants are submitted for the full project. Contributions may be made to Women for Afghan Women. Please write Lana-E-Omid on the memo line so that your contribution will be directed to the correct account. Opportunity 2: The background research is being done by a team of volunteers. All help is welcome from experts and general researchers with curious minds. The areas of expertise needed can be obtained by contacting David Gruner at dg@cdcpi.com. Opportunity 3: Take Action! Support Women for Afghan Women by hosting an event in your community. For more information contact Manizha Naderi at Manizha@womenforafghanwomen.org. Hearing The Stories: Books To Read Women for Afghan Women, edited by Sunita Mehta Kabul in Winter, by Ann Jones Fragments of Grace, by Pamela Constable The WAW Project Coordination Team** Manizha Naderi, Project Director Esther Hyneman, Board member Natalie Ghany, Volunteer Jeanne Farah, Volunteer David Gruner, Volunteer Shqipe Malushi, Volunteer For More Information and Project Updates Contact: Women for Afghan Women 32-17 College Point Blvd. Suite 206 Flushing, NY 11354 (718) 321-2434 Website: www.womenforafghanwomen.org Email: office@womenforafghanwomen.org Click here to read Manizha Naderi's, WAW's Administrative and Community Outreach Director's, recent speech about The Lana-E-Omid Project and the current problems facing women in Afghanistan.