Sightseeing in Bamiyan
By Kai Pflug In terms of sightseeing, the highlight of my stay in Afghanistan in November 2023 was a two-day trip to Bamiyan. That trip also included some time at Band-e-Amir, a national park – that park is described in a separate post written with Zarina Reza. A road trip through Afghanistan can be very […]
Characteristics of Afghanistan
By Kai Pflug Writing and editing blog posts about Afghanistan is not the hardest thing in the world – other activities (such as teaching a cat not to destroy furniture) are much harder. Still, it has its own challenges. One is finding suitable topics, and the other is actually writing about them. Sometimes the first […]
What is Nowruz?
By Muska Hamidi The first day of the solar year is called Nowruz. Nowruz is an ancient celebration, a native tradition and a long-standing custom in the field of Persian geography. This ancient celebration has a very old history among the nations of the world, especially Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan, Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan, […]
Some more information on the SITC, our Training Center for Young Afghans
By Kai Pflug Online education is currently more or less the only way for some young Afghans to learn new skills, given the restrictions on education in the country. While many young Afghans learn from YouTube, as an alternative, we have established the StayIN International Training Center (SITC). As Muneera already explained in a recent […]
The Status of the Afghan Economy
By Kai Pflug Presumably, readers of this series of blog posts have an interest in Afghanistan and also in the Afghan economy. However, realistically speaking, that does not mean many of you will read through a very recent 54-page (along with 54 graphs and figures) review by the UNDP titled “Changes in Afghan Economy, Households […]
Reduced Opium Production in Afghanistan and Its Consequences
By Kai Pflug In 2022, the Afghan authorities banned the cultivation of opium poppy and the production of opium. This ban so far has been very effective. Opium production declined by 95% from 6,200 tons produced in 2022 to 333 tons in 2023. Consequently, production of opium and heroin declined accordingly. The estimated value of […]
Books and Afghan Children
By Muska Hamidi Did you know that books can turn lives around? To demonstrate this to you, I wrote down the story of an Afghan boy named Ahmad. Ahmad was a fifth-grade student when his father was murdered in front of him by unknown assailants. The shock of this bitter event caused Ahmad to lose […]
Electricity: A Serious Issue for the Afghan Economy
By Kai Pflug If you frequently communicate with friends and colleagues based in Afghanistan, you will soon notice that remaining in contact online is sometimes difficult. Usually, the issue is a lack of electricity on the Afghan side, particularly in winter. While not being able to have a Zoom call with an Afghan friend is […]
The Resilience and Strength of Young Afghan Women
By Kai Pflug According to this year’s Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Index by Georgetown University’s Institute for Women, Peace and Security, Afghanistan ranks worst of 177 countries in terms of the status of women. Girls are banned from education beyond sixth grade, and women cannot enter public parks. Their right to work and to […]
A Short Introduction To Our New Training Center
By Muneera Aman Our new training center began its work on 15th January 2024. We held an online training teaching on how to prepare a convincing business plan. As we had more than 200 applicants demonstrated, this is a topic clearly of interest to many young Afghans, both male and female. This first training was […]