In Honor of International Women's Day - A comment from Dr. Sakena Yacoobi

Dr. Sakena Yacoobi, the Executive Director of the Afghan Institute of Learning and the Vice-President of Creating Hope International thanks the women of the world for standing by the women and children of Afghanistan.

“As you know, life is very difficult in Afghanistan. We really do not have good security. But, still, women are very optimistic and have hope for the future. Knowing that people in the international community are backing them up, and making sure that they get better training, a good education, and good health care makes a huge difference.

Yes, we have a long way to go, but we will do it. During this last 20 years of my work I have seen people come a long way. I am confident that we will rebuild our country with a civil society that is not a threat to the world. We will create better citizens who will follow the rule of law and be committed to their actions.

As you know, we have a rich culture and very old history. There was a time when people from all around the world would come to Afghanistan to get an education. Herat was the center of knowledge and poetry. People were proud, but unfortunately, these 32 years of war have destroyed our nation. The women and children have been exposed to many kinds of violence. The people of Afghanistan have lost trust and unity, and the culture has been destroyed. We need all kinds of help while we are working to rebuild our country and our people. So many people from the international community have been working side-by-side with us; helping. We have had a good relationship for 32 years and now it will take another 50 years to rebuild. We need more time. But, if we have the international community stand with us, we, by ourselves, can provide training and education so that we Afghans can sustain our own lives. In my experience in this world, if you train people to think on their own it really makes a difference in their lives. And, if people like you will stand side-by-side with us and encourage us, then people will know that the women and children of Afghanistan are courageous, not afraid, smart, and intelligent. If opportunities are given to them, they will rise up and change their nation for the better. Thank you all for understanding and helping us”.