Afghanistan: Rights & Democracy announces new four year commitment to women’s rights in Afghanistan
Source:
R&D Rights & Democracy announced a new four-year, $5-million project in support of Afghan-led efforts to put the rights of women and girls into practical use throughout the country.
Funded primarily by the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), the new project will focus specifically on four main initiatives:
* Support for Afghan legislators, jurists, religious authorities and civil society organizations working on the progressive reform of family law in order to see it brought in line with Afghanistan’s Constitution and its obligations under international human rights law;
* Support for Afghans promoting the use of a national marriage contract;
* Assistance to Afghans working to ensure greater respect for women’s rights at the community level, including support for legal aid and counselling for families;
* Assistance to Afghan civil society organizations and networks interested in developing effective advocacy tools, techniques and strategies for legislative reform.
The project will be implemented in Kabul, Kandahar and the four provinces of Balk, Herat, Kunduz and Ningarhar by Rights & Democracy’s office in Kabul.
‘This project will enable Afghans to put into practice their rights through legal reforms and community activism,’ said Jean-Louis Roy, President of Rights & Democracy.
The new project builds on the successes of Rights & Democracy’s Kabul-based Women’s Rights in Afghanistan Fund (WRAF), which was initiated with funding from the Canadian International Development Agency in 2002. Over the course of its four year lifespan, WRAF supported more than 55 Afghan-led projects throughout Afghanistan.
12 July 2007
