Leadership Development

*Note: Unless otherwise noted, all information regarding leadership development programming in Afghanistan is from 2019. Recent updates temporarily unavailable for safety and security reasons.

Afghan Women Leaders Connect identifies and supports effective and accountable Afghan women educators, doctors and health workers, lawyers and judges, and women in business, through: direct financial support; human rights training; voter education training; and in-depth, year-long business training to help expand and strengthen their organizations. Afghan Women Leaders CONNECT hosts an internet forum where Afghan women’s voices can be heard.  (Updated 2019)

The George W. Bush Institute (new window) is a solution-oriented nonpartisan policy organization focused on ensuring opportunity for all, strengthening democracy, and advancing free societies. Housed within the George W. Bush Presidential Center, the Bush Institute is rooted in compassionate conservative values and committed to creating positive, meaningful, and lasting change at home and abroad. We utilize our unique platform and convening power to advance solutions to national and global issues of the day. (Updated 2023)

Georgetown University (new window), home to the U.S.-Afghan Women’s Council, hosts the Rising Afghan Women Leaders Initiative for Afghan women leaders from a variety of sectors, bringing them together with Georgetown University students from the Washington DC and Doha campuses.  (Updated 2019)

Prime Counsel (new window), a legal services provider in Afghanistan, has sponsored a project to highlight
success stories of Afghan women leaders across Afghanistan. In April 2019, three female
writers were selected to conduct research and interviews of women. The series called “Leading
the Way” will be launched in September, with one article every month published each month in
collaboration with a leading think tank in Washington, DC. The objective of the initiative is to
highlight positive stories of success achieved by Afghan women leaders and share the
information through a web platform to connect individuals and organizations to these leaders and
their organizations, promoting collaboration. (Updated 2019)

The U.S. Institute of Peace (new window) is working to increase the chances of a sustainable peace deal for Afghanistan by supporting and promoting women’s interests in peace process discussions while strengthening needed negotiating skills. Over the next year, USIP will focus on strengthening the technical knowledge and skills of women who may have the chance to participate in, or otherwise influence, peace talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban, as well as on conducting research, identifying relevant local actors, and facilitating dialogues at the grass roots level to identify participants and messages that reflect women’s interests in a peace process outside provincial capitals. In addition, USIP engages local, regional, and national actors through face-to-face meetings, and traditional and social media engagement, highlighting the importance of women working on peace. USIP also works on addressing issues related to prosecution of cases of violence against women and advocates for amending certain provisions of the Penal Code. USIP is partnering with CSOs to identify those articles of law that are discriminatory, conflicting, and inconsistent with the constitution. (Updated 2019)

Voices on the Rise (new window): Afghan Women Making the News is a photojournalism exhibition dedicated to courageous Afghan women working towards the reconstruction of their country from all fields—journalism, art, government and human rights, among others. Originally launched across Canada from 2006 – 2009, the exhibition has toured extensively in the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Holland, and was recently shown at the Embassy of Finland on International Women’s Day, 2018. The exhibition provides an excellent platform for dialogue and helps to build bridges of understanding among its viewers about the resilience and determination of Afghan women role models to bring about constructive and positive change to their country. (Updated 2019)