government will help ,” he said .
Asked what CAI might be able to do to help , since government help has thus far not been forthcoming , he suggested a boundary wall , a “ social mobilization committee ” from CAI- Afghanistan to talk to villagers , and providing food for students . But ultimately , educated young women , role models , are best motivator .
“ People of this area don ’ t know value of girls ’ education because they see benefits of that ,” he said . “ Once we finish one class of girls all the way to class 12 , then they will see changes .”
As the conversation continued , Naqibullah cited another factor : a resurgence of Taliban in the area . As he explained , his voice was drowned out by the U . S . military helicopters flying overhead from nearby Bagram Air Force Base .
By the time he left the school , Karimi was clearly frustrated . As he drove along the road that was actually a dried-out river bottom , he said , “ This was the first school for girls ever in this region . Most villages in Pashtun areas ,
“
This kind of work requires patience and persistence . it will take one or two generations of girls ’ education to really see the big change .
— Greg Mortensen
Boys far outnumber girls atBoys far outnumber girls at the Musakhil Girls ' Primary School because parents are reluctant to send their daughters to classes that combine boys and girls .
they are only allowing girls ’ school in home . So this was a new idea for this village . They say if CAI could pay for more teachers , bring female teachers , and provide all materials , books , stationery and food , girls might come back to school . But all that costs money .”
He sighed and looked out the window . “ It is very difficult to work in Afghanistan .”
RIPPLE EFFECT ? Problems such as those at Musakhil School may be vex-some , but they are not insurmountable , Mortenson said .
“ This kind of work requires patience and persistence ,” he said . “ It will take one or two generations of girls ’ education to really see the big change . My father taught me to think in terms of generational changes where I grew up in Tanzania . That ’ s why I don ’ t even wear a watch . Even though CAI has been here 13 years , we ’ ve just started , and our sights are on the next two generations , and beyond . In America have instant texting , six-second sound-bytes , two-minute football drills , annual budgets , and four-year presidential cycles , but here success will come in generations .
“ Troops and other NGOs are leaving en masse , but CAI or the local infrastructure we ’ ve established will stay put . I remain optimistic . The more than 100,000 children in CAI ’ s school are a bright light for decades to come ,” he said .
CAI also remains firmly entrenched in
Pakistan and Tajikistan , he said , where the future is equally uncertain .
As Afghanistan ’ s neighbors , these countries worry about what might happen in the months ahead after international troops draw down . Will Afghanistan ’ s “ evil twins ,” as one commentator called them , of drug trafficking and religious extremism continue to ripple outward ?
Looking north into Central Asia , Joshua Kucera , a long-time writer about the region for EurasiaNet , says pinning all the region ’ s problems on Afghanistan is wrong . The most recent threats to Central Asia ’ s security actually have come from within .
“ When we talk about stability in Central Asia , everybody wants to talk about Afghanistan and the Taliban and spillover ,” Kucera said at a recent roundtable discussion . “ And yet what are the actual sources of instability that have appeared ? We have border conflicts between Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan , we have internal conflicts in Tajikistan in the Pamirs , we have labor revolts in Kazakhstan , we have ethnic pogroms in Osh . All these [ are ] things that don ’ t have to do with Afghanistan .”
TAJIKISTAN The people of Tajikistan ’ s Pamir region — like residents throughout the regions where CAI works — insist on hospitality and go above and beyond to welcome guests . It is impolite to refuse an offer of tea , which almost inevitably
20 | Journey of Hope C E N T R A L A S I A I N S T I T U T E