EDCI 580: Global Issues: Case Study Afghanistan

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Where are we in the United States?

"The advancement of women’s rights is critical to political and economic progress everywhere around the world. This is especially true in Afghanistan, where women’s human rights have been ignored, attacked and eroded over decades, especially under Taliban rule."

U.S. Department of State, Diplomacy in Action (2010). Advancing the Rights of Women and Girls: Keys to a Better Future for Afghanistan. Retrieved from http://www.state.gov/s/special_rep_afghanistan_pakistan/2010/136250.htm

The advancement of women’s rights is critical to political and economic progress everywhere around the world. This is especially true in Afghanistan, where women’s human rights have been ignored, attacked and eroded over decades, especially under Taliban rule.

Women for Afghan Women

Domestic Violence: Afghanistan 's first step towards fighting domestic violence

How can SWOT analysis be used to better understand and assess local NGO's trying to support Afghanistan abroad?

Strengths

• Grass-roots (local) NGOs. They have a long-term presence on the ground and enjoy trust. They have local cultural and political knowledge and awareness of local economic conditions. With fewer operating costs, they can be innovative and flexible. They are committed to poor and marginalized groups.

• International NGOs can boast a global reputation, are good at networking and can mobilize resources and issue expertise. Their research and advocacy for issues have few political constraints. They are expert at influencing public opinion and policy-makers. They usually have a paid core staff.

• Business-interest NGOs, whether local or global, possess specialized knowledge about trade issues, markets and contacts in their field.

Weaknesses

• Grass-roots NGOs may have limited issue expertise and resources. They can miss the big picture on some subjects and may not fully understand market forces, making it harder to link with business or government partners. They may not be financially sustainable.

• International NGOs. Some advocacy NGOs have limited implementation capacity. They may find it hard to see past special interests. They suffer from inconsistent revenue flows from donations. They may appear to have a government/corporate “phobia” and can be accused of “selling out” when they work with these bodies.
• Business-interest NGOs may have limited experience with poor communities. Some do not reflect the needs of small firms. They may not be sustainable on membership fees alone. They can be single-issue organizations.

Opportunities

• Grass-roots NGOs can make good partners in export development programmes to bring in local communities, implement some training and encourage participatory development. They can help shift the export focus away from commodities even at the small-producer level. They can contribute their experience in integrating health and education initiatives in development programmes.

• International NGOs can partner with agencies and governments to mobilize public opinion on trade issues where they have common interests. Their voice and mandate often bring a social dimension that complements the business and data analysis and trade expertise. This can make them effective partners for trade programmes that address broader issues such as the environment, women, technology and others.

• Business-interest NGOs can contribute sector-specific expertise to help producers add value, improve quality and find new export markets. They can act as clearing-houses for trade information.

Threats

• Isolated efforts may have the wrong focus or a weak impact. Trade development authorities not working in partnership with NGOs could mean:

• Grass-roots NGOs may set up unsustainable initiatives without linking to wider trade development solutions. There are fewer chances to connect poor people with export opportunities.

• International NGOs can define the dialogue and public understanding of trade issues without the voice and experience of trade agencies. They may miss promising prospects for trade development because of their focus on the marginalized. They may, for example, focus on micro-producers, overlooking small and medium-sized enterprises.

• Business-interest NGOs may lobby against one another with policy-makers, unless there are opportunities for dialogue, leading to common positions on major trade challenges.

SWOT Analysis: NGOs as Partners

By Natalie Domeisen and Prema de Sousa, ITC

© International Trade Centre, International Trade Forum - Issue 2/2006

What can you do?

Montana Connection for Afghan Women

Using SWOT analysis as a framework, discuss how MCAW might increase involvement and promote more awarness of women's issues in Afghanistan?

?

Currently, there is very little support available to women and girls for the treatment of PTSD/depression. Suicide rates are rising.

What are the posibilities of starting an initiative for Aghan women through the TAPS program sponsored by the US military?

TAPS, developed a program for Iraqi widows, that offers mental health support among other services. This could be a good model to analyze and might be useful to Afghan women suffering from PTSD and depression.

Program Summary:

"Social disruption is the context for many people's lives after group violence such as war, mass killing, or terrorism. We cannot ignore the importance of social problems such as poverty, lack of food and shelter, and disrupted community. However, people are often unable to solve their social problems without understanding and addressing their emotional and other psychological problems."

"TAPS’ programs in Iraq seek to address both the social and emotional needs of those traumatized by war and local hostilities. TAPS will provide bereavement and emotional support to war survivors. TAPS will also help to seed microbusinesses across Iraq’s provinces to train disadvantaged Iraqi widows on a set of skills that will empower them politically and increase their economic independence."

Service learning framework:

Building relationships in Afghanistan

Europe

Iceland

Russia

Land of volcanoes

Sweden

Norway

Estonia

Latvia

Denmark

Lithuania

England

MCAW Fundraiser

Ireland

Belarus

2011

Poland

Netherlands

Germany

Belgium

Czech Republic

Luxembourg

Ukraine

Slovakia

Kazakstan

Austria

Mongolia

Moldova

EU

Hungary

France

Switzerland

Romania

Italy

We're here.

Former Yugoslavia

Bozeman, Montana

Bulgaria

Uzbekistan

Krygzstan

Albania

North Korea

Japan

Spain

China

Turkmenistan

Portugal

References:

Afghan health adviser warns of increasing depression among women. (2010, BBC Monitoring International Reports.

Rubin, Alyssa J. (2010). For afghan women, an escape in flames: Self-immolation becomes exit strategy for wives trapped in cycle of abuse. International Herald Tribune, pp. 1.

Bose, P. (2010). From humanitarian intervention to the beautifying mission: Afghan women and beauty without borders. Genders, (51)

Glavin, Terry. (2010, War crazy; many afghans suffer from mental illness. Calgary Herald, pp. A.11.

Wil Morat. (2008). Afghan women find a partner for justice. Tikkun, 23(5), 16.

Anonymous. (2010, Most afghans are mentally ill. The Australian, pp. 10.

Violence against women rises in afghan west. (2009, BBC Monitoring International Reports.

Heidi Kingstone. (2009). Afghanistan counts the cost of conflict in mental health. Middle East, (396), 70.

Mark Eggerman, Catherine Panter-Brick, Viani Gonzalez, & Sarah Safdar. (2009). Violence, suffering, and mental health in afghanistan: A school-based survey. The Lancet, 374(9692), 807-816. doi:10.1016/S0140-6736(09)61080-1

Afghan daily calls for increase in drug addiction treatment centres. (2009, BBC Monitoring International Reports.

Anonymous. (2009). Revitalising health in afghanistan. The Lancet, 374(9691), 664.

Kim, S., Kim, H., Liw, L., & Shin, S. (2009). Depression and PTSD in pashtun women in kandahar, afghanistan. ASIAN NURSING RESEARCH, 3(2), 90-98.

Pupavac, V. (2008). Refugee advocacy, traumatic representations and political disenchantment. GOVERNMENT AND OPPOSITION, 43(2), 270-292. doi:10.1111/j.1477-7053.2008.00255.x

Pupavac, V. (2006). The politics of emergency and the demise of the developing state: Problems for humanitarian advocacy. Development in Practice, 16(3-4), 255-269. doi:10.1080/09614520600694794

Vanessa Pupavac, & Caroline Hughes. (2005). Framing post-conflict societies: International pathologisation of cambodia and the post-yugoslav states. Third World Quarterly, 26(6), 873-889. doi:10.1080/01436590500089232

Paul M Rodriguez. (2003). Rebuilding afghanistan. Insight on the News, 19(15), 18.

Leppäniemi, A. (2004). Global trends in trauma. Trauma, 6(3), 193-203. doi:10.1191/1460408604ta314oa

Betancourt, T. S., & Bolton, P. (2004). Mental health in postwar afghanistan. JAMA: The Journal of the American Medical Association, 292(5), 626-628. doi:10.1001/jama.292.5.626

Suyemoto, K. L., Lin, N. J., & Kiang, P. N. (2009). Education as catalyst for intergenerational refugee family communication about war andtrauma. Communication Disorders Quarterly, 30(4), 195-207. doi:10.1177/1525740108329234

Greece

Tajikistan

Turkey

http://www.womenforafghanwomen.org/

http://www.taps.org/

http://www.taps.org/iraqconnection/initiatives.aspx

http://afghanwomensnetwork.org/wordpress/

Life Today for Afghan Women

Afghanistan

Iraq

Iran

Israel (Jerusalem)

This semester we have been exploring women's issues in Pakistan and Afghanistan a region of the world that is so far geographically, yet virtually just a skype away.

This prezi aims to review some of the material from our journey.

Enjoy the trip!

Understanding Global Poverty: Case Study Afghanistan

Pakistan

Nepal

Bhutan

Saudi Arabia

Bangladesh

Delhi

Cuba

Mexico

Mecca

Myanmar

Military Dictatorship

Haiti

Dominican

Republic

Laos

Jamaica

Puerto Rico

Belize

India

Thailand

An archipelago (i.e.

Many small islands)

What do we know about women's roles in the development of Afghanistan?

Guatemala

Honduras

El Salvador

Cambodia

Nicaragua

Vietnam

Costa Rica

South America

Eco-Tourism

Tourism that supports the local environment,

communities, and is economically viable.

It can be successful as long as it brings social change and prosperity to local communities

The Panama Canal

Panama

Central America & the Caribbean

Phillipines

Sri Lanka

Suriname

Ethiopia

South Asia

Guyana

Venezuela

Malaysia

Guiana

Colombia

Somalia

Singapore

Great situation as a major trading hub

Ecuador

Indonesia

South East Asia

Bali

Folk culture vs. Popular culture

Practiced in large urban centres.

Spread via technology and mass media (TV, internet...)

Practiced in isolated rural settings.

Values consumerism

Resort Hotels

Values tradition

Traditional Landscape

Hinduism is the dominant religion

Brazil

Peru

Bolivia

Madagascar

Sao Paulo

Paraguay

Australia

Iguazu Falls

Chile

Argentina

South Africa

English speaking former colony of Britain

Uruguay

Africa

New Zealand