Drug addiction has been rising for the past few years. The First Lady is concerned about it and has decided to pay attention to this calamity with the hope to somehow be of help to addicts to get rid of this vicious problem.
First Lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
"This is your world, shape it or someone else will!"
BibiGul, October 8, 2014
The First Lady is very hopeful that the rising generations of Afghans will bring new energy to the rebuilding of Afghanistan. With her team she works hard so that the young people of this country are provided with all the opportunities to grow strong, capable, and ready to assume their responsibilities towards their homeland. Her main areas of interest are:
The First Lady is very hopeful that the rising generations of Afghans will bring new energy to the rebuilding of Afghanistan. With her team she works hard so that the young people of this country are provided with all the opportunities to grow strong, capable, and ready to assume their responsibilities towards their homeland. Her main areas of interest are:
On 26th September 2016, a group of young Afghans including girls and boys who have gotten their master’s degree in various fields from Japan, came to the First Lady’s Office to meet with Her Excellency the First Lady. In the beginning, one by one, they introduced themselves. The purpose of their meeting with the First Lady was to expand social activities and build networks with Political and Social leaders, and they intend to work in the areas of applying democracy, and strengthening cultural and social activities. In this meeting, they presented their ideas to the First Lady one of which focused on street children who are exposed to various risks and thus is a threat to social security. The idea suggested that investment should be done on them and some learning centers and handicrafts making centers should be built while they also get psychological treatment. Moreover, they also added that they have certain ideas on city transport to women. The First Lady while appreciating their ideas asked them to send the detailed ideas and plans to her office.
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On April 8th, 2016, H.E. Rula (Bibi Gul) Ghani, the First Lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, met the Sesame Street Character, Zari, which is a production of Sesame Street, during the Women in the World Summit in New York City. This is an interesting educational and cultural program for Afghan children, which gets published through TOLO and Lemar TVs. H.E. First Lady, while meeting Zari character added that the broadcast of such educational programs that are also entertaining, is beneficial for social and cultural growth of Afghan children.
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On March 1st, 2016, H.E. the First Lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Ms. Rula (BiBi Gul) Ghani attended in the Acknowledgement Ceremony of the Afghan Scout Program, which was held in the Government Media and Information Hall. Minister of Labor and Social Affairs, Youth Affairs Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Culture and Information, Advisors of the First Lady of Afghanistan, and Afghan scouts were also present at this ceremony. This program was held in coordination with the Youth Affairs Deputy of the Ministry of Culture and Information in order to acknowledge the Afghan Scout – Voice of Afghan Youth program and former scouts vested the title of the First Lady of Scout to H.E. the First Lady of Afghanistan. H.E. the First Lady of Afghanistan, during her speech, called on youth to have unity solidarity, encouraged and appreciated the Afghan Young Scout’s activities.
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On January 11th, 2016, Promote project (USAID) for Afghan women celebrated its 300 students’ graduation ceremony in Amani High School. H.E the First Lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Ms. Rula (BiBi Gul) Ghani also participated in this ceremony. While seeing the projects of these young girls, she encouraged them stating that they must apply their knowledge to their personal life and for the development of their country. H.E also added: young girls must improve their listening and speaking skills and within their cultural and religious values’ framework, they should have comprehensive debates on rights. These courses were for short term, three months. In this ceremony, one of the Promote Project students’ parents said that the program has been beneficial in terms of for improvement of young girls’ skills and future, and added that his daughter learned leadership skills through this program, her confidence is raised and her hope for future has become better; she thus thinks optimistic now. We hope that the promote project, which is a part of USAID projects be beneficial for the training of young Afghan girls in areas of leadership and economic development, solidarity and good governance.
» Read MoreThe time lost in decades of war broke the chain of passing down our culture and practices from last generation to next. Young generations of Afghans either grew up in Immigration or their families were too caught up in day to day survival; social respect and norms were lost in those struggles. We bring stories of past culture and present issues that could be solved with reviving those cultures. You can share your stories at info@firstlady.gov.af
In order to preserve and support historical monuments, cultural heritage, and creative art of Afghanistan, a Trust Fund was created by Mrs. Irina Bokova, head of UNESCO in Afghanistan, in presence of H.E. Muhammad Ashraf Ghani, president of Afghanistan, H.E. the First Lady of Afghanistan, Ambassadors and Afghan Media in Delkusha Palace, on May 27th, 2016. The formation of this Trust Fund will be very helpful, especially to strengthen the Creative Art and preserve Cultural Heritage of Afghanistan, which would also provide jobs to our people. It will also help Afghans, visitors, and tourists in understanding the history and culture of Afghanistan.
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As he was being sworn in as President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan on September 29, 2014/Mizan 7, 1393, H.E. Ashraf Ghani thanked his wife thus automatically underlining the establishment of Afghanistan’s First Lady Office. The decision for the Office to focus on social and non-political issues was based on the Background of H.E. the First Lady and her previous work assisting IDPs (internally displaced people) and children working on the streets of Kabul. The office of H.E. the First Lady of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan was established in October 2014/Mizan 1393.
A prosperous Afghanistan where all Afghans, especially women, are respected regardless of ethnic background, gender, power or position.
To improve the provision of quality services to all vulnerable sections of the population through monitoring and facilitation.
Basic needs in Afghanistan are enormous. Given the non-political nature of this office and its recent establishment, the main areas of interest are:
Hundreds of groups and individuals from all over Afghanistan have come and still do, hoping to share their concerns, hopes, and achievements, wiht the First Lady.
The Office of the First Lady has served as a channel for these citizens, connecting them with relevant branches of government to ensure their voice is heard.
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Please contact our office by e-mail at info@firstlady.gov.af
You will be requested to state the reason why you want to meet with the First Lady as well as some information about your activities and those of your group.
The Office will then inform you of the date of your meeting and will provide you with directions to the Office.
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The First Lady is happy to meet with all sections of society.
She is especially intrested in helping groups that are active in Afghan society develop their potential and reach their goals.
The Office of the First Lady is not allocated an operational budget. In other words, this Office has no funds to distribute. The Office does provide assistance in networking and access to information.
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"I Shall Not Remain Silent"
BibiGul on Drug Abuse, November 2015
The First Lady is speaking up on a few National Issues:
The First Lady is speaking up on a few National Issues:
Paying attention and caring for the environment is an important matter in the lives of human beings, the more attention is being paid on environment, the better our environment will get. In order to have a valuable society, we should start with ourselves. As a way of preventing environmental contamination and pollution, Office of H.E. the First Lady of Afghanistan prepared dustbins to separate the garbage and recycle the wastes and it is hopeful that everyone uses the same way to have a healthy environment and healthy generation.
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On July 27, 2016, Afghan Cancer Foundation was inaugurated at the presidential palace in the presence of H.E. the president and the First Lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, ministers, ambassadors and MPs. Afghan Cancer Foundation, which was created by the initiation of the health department of H.E. the First Lady’s Office in collaboration with the Ministry of Public Health, is the first cancer diagnostic and treatment foundation. During this ceremony, a trust fund was also inaugurated for the foundation in which the Ministry of Finance donated US$150,000 as a first donation and all the national and international institutions were called upon to donate to this foundation and take part in diagnosis and treatment of cancers diseases.
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Today, November 25th, 2015 Ministry of Women Affairs celebrated the International Elimination of Violence against Women Day. Dilbar Nazari, the Women Affairs Minister, inaugurated the ceremony with a speech and the HE First Lady started her speech by reciting the 21st verse of Al-rom Surah.
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The Ministry of Public Health expresses its deep concern for various kinds of cancer, especially breast and cervical cancers. Unfortunately, dozens of Afghan women due to lack of awareness about breast and cervical cancer and lack of access to treatment and diagnosis of this disease lose their lives. Therefore, a vast campaign began by the request of Ms. Shenkai Karokhail, one of the parliament members who has suffered from breast cancer and is under continues treatment with the support of the office of the First Lady of IRoA Ms. Rula (BiBi Gul) Ghani and technical cooperation of Ministry of Public Health. As a result of the efforts of relevant organizations, Ministry of Public Health, and efforts of the First Lady Health Advisor, Ms. Fawzia Alam, a land was promised by the ICRC in order to build a center for diagnosis and treatment of cancer and also, on October 21st, 2015, a conference was held in MarMaren Palace in order to raise awareness about Breast and Cervical Cancer among women and provide them with a satisfied result. The First lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan presented her views on this matter at the conference via a video message and emphasized that further efforts must be made to let Afghan women have access to long-term treatment for the prevention of cancer through different ways and they must be provided with important information about breast and cervical cancers.
» Read MoreWe value Volunteerism. Volunteers are an important part of communities and we encourage youth to make this culture common among communities inside and outside the cities. You can register with us as volunteer here.
"The Afghan woman is strong.She should not be seen as a weak individual. This is a woman who, after years of war and insecurity, has carried on relentlessly and assumed her responsibilities. "
Bibigul, Women's International Day, March 8, 2015
large number of groups of women come to see the First Lady. Some are from Kabul, many are from the provinces—sometimes as far away as Shignan/Badakhshan, Nuristan, Jawzjan, Daykundi, Takhar or Ghor.
By listening to their concerns and hopes, the First Lady and her team have had to address a variety of issues:
Our efforts are guided by two main goals:
The First Conference on women’s empowerment in agriculture sector started on December 03, 2016 in Marmarin Palace, which continued for three days. Her Excellency Rola (Bibi Gul) Ghani, First Lady of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, participated in this conference. During her speech at the conference, she described the role of agriculturist women in the household economy “important” and by addressing them, she said: “you, by your efforts, can provide peace and stability not only to your families, but also to your villages and when you provide a piece of bread on the dining table of a family, it shows your importance in the family and the society and people have realized your importance in the family, in which case respecting you can decrease the violence”. Her Excellency also added that special attention should be paid to the capacity building of the agriculturist women so they can have healthy competitions in local and international markets for boosting the economy of the country. Speaking in the conference, Assadullah Zamir, the Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock Minister, and Dilbar Nazari, Minister of Women’s Affairs, spoke of wise things about the role of women in agriculture and economy in the conference. Later, thanking the minister of agriculture, irrigation and livestock for his efforts, an award, which was recommended by the First Lady of the Country and provided by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, was granted by Mrs. Palwasha Amin, the advisor of the First Lady on refugees and the displaced, to the minister of agriculture, irrigation and livestock. Awards and certificates, which were considered by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock for the active men in the process of women’s empowerment in agriculture and the leaders of agriculturist women, were also distributed.
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The First Lady of the country, Her Excellency Rola (Bibi Gul) Ghani participated in a gathering on November 23, 2016, which was organized on the topic of Elimination of Violence against Women Week in Salam Khana Palace of the Presidential Palace. His Excellency Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Dilbar Nazari, Minister of Women’s Affairs, and some other ministers, MPs, members of the civil society and women networks also participated in this gathering. Dilbar Nazari talked about violence against women and the activities of Ministry of Women’s Affairs in this regard and also presented some relevant recommendations and suggestions to the National Unity Government and the President. The President stated that the first person to accept Islam was a woman, Bibi Khadija, and that there is no place for violence against women in Islamic studies. He also stated that women should not be considered as the second citizen of the country anymore. Moreover, His Excellency Dr. Abdullah Abdullah stated that the National Unity Government is committed to the Elimination of Violence against Women Law. During this ceremony, a short documentary of a young Afghan who had sat in a protest tent for a long time to show his objection of the ritual of “giving bad” towards girls was also played. Afterwards a women who took refuge to shelters after being physically harassed by her husband also gave a speech and urged the President to ensure to keep and continue the shelters as they are the only place where women who are violated against could go to.
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On November 19, 2016 a ceremony was held in Zainab Nandari by businesswomen and female entrepreneurs, led by LEAD Organization. Her Excellency Rola (Bibi Gul) Ghani the First Lady of the Country participated in the ceremony. Speaking in the ceremony, the First Lady of the Country addressed to female entrepreneurs that in the beginning of Islam, women were entrepreneurs and successful and Bibi Khadija herself was a businesswoman and her commercial convoys played an important role in the economic relations in the world. She also stated that women make up the strongest pillars of a society and their economic self-sufficiency and self-confidence can not only help them, but also play an important role in the improvement of their family as well as public welfare, and the government is responsible to provide women with trade and economic self-sufficiency opportunities. Mrs. Dilbar Nazari, the minister of women affairs, also talked about business opportunities for the creative and entrepreneur women, in the ceremony. Mrs. Manizha Waseq, who is one of the co-founders of LEAD Organization, introduced the entrepreneur women who so far have done something in this regard. In the meantime, she shared with the participants, about the problems and constraints women are facing nowadays.
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The Special Commission for reviewing the cases Afghanistan’s female inmates started a process of reviewing the cases, based on the law, in five provinces of the country (Kabul, Balkh, Parwan, Nangarhar and Kapisa). Mrs. Nadia Saleh, women and security advisor to the First Lady of the Country, was a member of the mentioned commission and reviewed the problems of female inmates and presented His Excellency the President of the country with a detailed report in a bid to improve the situation of the female prisoners. The report included the completion of the incomplete cases, decrease in the period of imprisonment of the female inmates and re-investigation of the cases of women who have been forgiven. Also, the report rejected media’s irresponsible reports about the female inmates of Paktika province, which indicated that the female inmates are being kept in the residential houses of the tribal elders of this province. In fact, no female inmate is living in the houses of the tribal elders and more to that is there are no female inmates in Paktika province. Also, the prison of Paktia province has been built on standard basis.
» Read More"He who is standing should reach down to the fallen one"
Saadi Shirazi, 13th Century Poet
Several decades of conflict and war have disrupted the very fabric of Afghan society. Families were torn apart, people were wounded or maimed, some died, other disappeared or moved away, and many widows were left to raise their children on their own. People fled from unsafe locations, some to urban centers in Afghanistan, other to neighboring countries. Over the past fifteen years, the situation has slowly improved and the Afghan extended family, the pillar of Afghan society, is being reconstituted. But the sequels of war remain. The attention of the First Lady and her team is focused on the most vulnerable of these populations:
Several decades of conflict and war have disrupted the very fabric of Afghan society. Families were torn apart, people were wounded or maimed, some died, other disappeared or moved away, and many widows were left to raise their children on their own. People fled from unsafe locations, some to urban centers in Afghanistan, other to neighboring countries. Over the past fifteen years, the situation has slowly improved and the Afghan extended family, the pillar of Afghan society, is being reconstituted. But the sequels of war remain. The attention of the First Lady and her team is focused on the most vulnerable of these populations:
On November 04, 2016 His Excellency Mohammad Ashraf Ghani, the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Her Excellency Rola (Bibi Gul) Ghani, First Lady of the IRoA, and their accompanied delegation attended the mourning ceremony of Ghor’s recent martyers. Some members of the cabinet and tribal elders accompanied the delegation of His Excellency the President and the First Lady of the country in this trip. During this trip, the First Lady of the country met with women from different classes of Ghor Province and Hajira Bashari, the acting head of Ghor’s DoWA, who reported on the situation and problems of women in Ghor Province to the First Lady of the country. Also representing the civil society and people of Ghor Province, Mrs. Anwari talked about the general situation and existing challenges in Ghor Province. Finally, on behalf the women of Ghor Province, Seema Joyenda, in order to salute the First Lady of the Country, put the local veil of the women of Ghor Province on the shoulders of H.E. the First Lady of the country and appreciated her visit to Ghor Province. In the meantime, the First Lady encouraged the women of Ghor Province for generating better handicrafts and establishing agricultural gardens and urged the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock and the Ministry of Commerce to help the women of Ghor Province in these areas.
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The process of the Afghan government’s help of the returned refugees, who do not hold Pakistani immigration documents, officially started on Monday, the 30th of October 2016, by a delegation, who had traveled to Nangarhar from Kabul, in the presence of Mr. Gulab Mangal, the provincial governor of Nangarhar Province, in Torkham Bordar. According to the Ministry of Refugees and Repatriations’ plans for immediate handling of the repatriates, the government of Afghanistan, especially His Excellency the President and Her Excellency the First Lady of the country, started provision of immediate outreach including cash aids, health services, drinkable water and awareness to returned refugees. Accompanying the mentioned delegation, the advisors of the office of Her Excellency the First Lady welcomed refugees back to the country and also visited Samar Khil Camp, where hundreds of returned families return on daily basis. On top of that, they visited the Nangarhar Women’s Prison and after collecting information about the female prisoner’s problems, they sent it the Special Commission for Investigation of the Cases of Prisoners.
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On Sept 11, 2016, representatives of H.E. the First Lady’s office visited Alauddeen and Tahya Maskan Orphanages. In the beginning H.E. the First Lady’s Eid message was delivered to the children in orphanages by her advisor while adding that H.E the President and First Lady of Afghanistan do always remember them. Also on the occasion of Eid –ul- Adha, some amount of money, gifts and lunch were provided to the children. The children thanked H.E the First Lady’s kindness for remembering them on blessed days of Eid.
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On July 18, 2016, H.E. the First Lady of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Mrs. Rula (Bibi Gul) Ghani participated in a gathering called National Mobilization to Counter Narcotics in which Ms. Salamat Azimi, Ministr of Counter Narcotics and some other governmental officials were present as well. In this gathering the First Lady called on people of all parts of society to come together to aware the public about the harms of drug use and to find ways to prevent addiction. She added that unfortunately addiction is not specific to either poor or rich pointing out to the fact that even people with higher education have fallen to this divastating trap. She also called upon media to perform their responsibility through broadcasting about the harms of drugs. In addition, a previously woman addict who was treated and got rid of addiction talked and expressed that she was delighted to be recovering from this menace and asked all other women addicts to go for treatment to the available Drug Treatment Centers and continue their normal life after they get treated and released from the center.
» Read MoreDue to war we have lost our valuable resources that were present in archives and libraries. This is the time to bring back scholarly essays about Islamic Civilization that are written through different course of history by Afghan Scholars- Please share your work with us at info@firstlady.gov.af
Four decades of war in Afghanistan has left us with instability, lack of security and lost lives. The war has left many grieved families and gave them little time to heal. This page honors lives that were lost in war through sharing their stories and memories. Please share your story with us at info@firstlady.gov.af
Kandahar is well known as the birthplace of the Taliban, beginning in Arghandab; the birth village of Mullah Muhammad Omar. His popularity increased during the late 80s when he led the Battle of Arghandab, which was an offensive led by Afghan and Soviet forces but ended in utter failure. Arghandab is a district within the central part of Kandahar province, known for its green and agricultural landscape. During my first day in Kandahar I visited Arghandab district and was astounded with what I was seeing within the first few minutes. The mesmerizing beautiful greenery weaving through the district, the calm and hospitable residents, and the river of Arghandab – which dries up during the summer but maintains a crystal clear demeanor through the rest of the year. On the outskirts of the river, next to a small waterway, we had a melon and saw a man who had a shop there - cooling himself off from the heat by immersing himself in the river.
My journey across Afghanistan has taken me to many different regions, including Mazar-e-Sharif, Herat, Kandahar and Nangarhar. Each of them has presented some wonderful memories, people and experiences – but the one place that has surprised me tremendously is Kandahar. I found it unpredictably secure, friendlier than many other regions across the country (including some great camera posers), a mutual respect for the law but an underlying struggle for peace regardless. I am glad that my experiences from Kandahar can possibly change the mindsets of people whom are thinking that the entirety of Kandahar could be your graveyard - well yeah! You will find many graveyards in every corner of the city or around the villages. My local friend had asked me while showing me the city, ‘’How did Kandahar look to you?” I frequently answered: ‘’It was amazing and I never thought of such positivity around, but why are there so many cemeteries?” Feroz responded by saying, ‘’ Well, these graveyards are the price of peace in Kandahar.” Even though you will not see any official license plates on cars (mostly being either from a Dubai plate number or without a plate completely), people drive very carefully, following the traffic lights, which would be rare in the capital. I saw a local man standing with his motorcycle at 11pm for the red light in a road which you will not see any other cars passing by. The nightlife among people is busy, many staying out and mingling, eating and chatting past midnight. They are people who love to enjoy life and not live under the shadow of fear. One of the nights I was in ‘AINO MEENA’ (The New Modern City of Kandahar, with beautiful fountains on the road, amazing boulevards and bright lights at night) having dinner with my fellow colleagues and just as we were about to finish the meal, we ordered tea with a hookah. Looking up, we saw three bullet proof cars parked on the roadside with 10 bodyguards around their boss. The restaurant we were having our tea had an open space beside the road so a policeman came and kicked on those cars not to park there and the bodyguards ran towards him. This was the first time during my trip in which I was scared and thought they will beat or kill this police man. The bodyguards had RPGs, Machine Guns and AK47Kalashnikovs. Surprisingly, they were begging the policeman to let them be there. “Once they are eating and finished, then we will leave’’ said one of the guards. The kindness and civility absolutely shocked me. Throughout my time in Kandahar, a friend of a friend allowed me to use a car to drive around if I needed to get around the city. At every police checkpoint, questions were asked such as, "What have you got? A gun, a card?" If I said no, they would ask, "Mind if I check?" And if I agreed, then they would say I am good to go and to stay blessed. I remember my last day in Kandahar when I was asked the same questions at a final police checkpoint and the officer began again with, "What have you got?" and I answered: "I've got myself and this car." He replied: ‘’Then tell me you've got an iPhone and glasses as well!" I ended our conversation by telling him how proud I was to be stopped by such a young and strong police officer. His happiness showed through his face and he shook my hands and said, ‘’Allah De Mal Sha Zwana’’: which means, "May Allah protect you always, young man!" This is how mutual respect happens only in Kandahar. As I have mentioned earlier, every little second in Kandahar was filled with surprises and priceless memories. I can only share a few in this piece of writing but I can happily say that Kandahar is in a state of constant growth and peace. Change your perception and see it for yourself! - Qayce Alamdar
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