This International Women’s Day we’re taking a look back at some of our members’ success stories from the last year in advocating for and advancing women’s rights across the globe, with a particular focus on women in Afghanistan.
Across the world, women and girls face unique challenges, especially in regions made vulnerable due to conflict, climate change and political instability, where gender inequality compounds existing injustices in such a way that makes women and girls more at risk to gender-based violence and systematic oppression.
Women also play a crucial role in sustainable development work. SIDA members engage in vital work to support women and girls around the world through projects designed to empower and uplift the voices of those who have been systematically silenced.
The theme for International Women’s Day this year, Accelerate Action, is a worldwide call to acknowledge strategies, resources, and activity that positively impact women’s advancement, and to support and elevate their implementation.
One of SIDA’s members already working towards this goal is the Linda Norgrove Foundation. The foundation, established in memory of British aid worker Linda Norgrove, began a campaign in 2021 to bring Afghan women who have been barred from attending University by the Taliban to study medicine in Scotland.
Since the Taliban regained control in Afghanistan in 2021, the country has become a stark symbol of the global crisis in women’s rights. Women and girls are facing unparalleled restrictions on education, employment, movement, and personal freedoms.
Following their campaign, last year the Linda Norgrove Foundation welcomed 19 women to Scotland to commence studies following an agreement with Scotland’s medical schools. The students were among more than 100 being sponsored by the Foundation to study medicine in Afghanistan.
The foundation worked to secure funding from the Scottish Government to cover the tuition fees for the women, and supported them to clear the required administrative hurdles; negotiating the border travel to Pakistan to apply for visas and providing assistance for organising English tests and securing accommodation and bank accounts.
Providing access to education is a vital step in returning power to these women. Read more about the initiative, and hear directly from the women benefiting from the program here.
The initiative was commended at a recent event at the Scottish Parliament organised by SIDA member Glasgow Afghan United, where Fawzia Koofi, former Vice President of the National Assembly of Afghanistan called on politicians in the Global North to take concrete steps to supporting women and girls, emphasising the importance of scholarships and educational opportunities, where she highlighted that the education of women is what determines our futures.
It is important to remember that although there are elements of shared experiences and solidarity between women around the world, gender inequality can have very different consequences and impacts in different countries and contexts. We must not forget women in Afghanistan, and it is imperative that we continue to work together to reduce gender imbalances and inequality across the globe. Beyond talk, we need action.
