Project 4 Awesome is an annual livestream in which we share videos about charity organizations that are close to our heart.
One half of the donations raised during the lifestream will be donated to the organizations that receive the most votes. The other half will be donated to Partners in Health and Safe the Children.

You can find out more about P4A, other charity organizations and leave your votes here:
https://www.projectforawesome.com/

You can learn more about the Afghan Volunteer Women's Association here:
https://www.afghanischer-frauenverein.de/en/

Many thanks to Chen Meiyan for editing the music:
https://chenmeiyan.art/
https://youtube.com/@meiyanchen-composer1505

The title of the piano piece is "Peace of mind" and it is written by ibi:
https://www.ibipiano.com/
https://youtube.com/@ibiBerlin
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Transcript:

Hi, I'd like to tell you about the Afghan Volunteer Women's Association for this year's project for awesome.

The Afghan Volunteer Women's Association (AFV) is a humanitarian aid organization that was founded in 1992 by 12 afghan-german women.

The AFV is following three principles: to provide support for self-help, to empower women and girls, and to support communities in rural areas in Afghanistan.
The AFV works in five areas: water supply, education, medical care, emergency relief and family sponsorships.

In 2021 the AFV build 64 wells in remote villages. Each of these wells provides clean water for 100 to 200 people, which is crucial as rivers often contain pesticides and germs that cause illness and disease.

The AFV finances four schools. Two among those schools are all-girls-schools. Beside school education for children the AFV runs a school where women are taught sewing, reading, calculating and accounting. After graduation the women are given sewing machines so that they can work as tailors.
The AFV also arranges scholarships for women who want to pursue a university degree.

Besides schools the AFV finances medical and maternity clinics and sends out midwives who train local health workers in rural areas. As many international aid organizations left after the takeover of the Taliban many clinics had to close. Child and maternal mortality is rising since. Every second child under the age of five suffers from malnutrition.
The AFV reopened six of these clinics over the past two years.
Since 2021 the AFV sends out teams of doctors, midwives and trauma experts to provide mobile medical care. They also provide care packages during the rough winters, containing warm blankets, clothes and food for the next two to three months.

For families in need the AFV organizes sponsorships. These monthly donations reach 189 families in Afghanistan today.

For the local employees, who work for the AFV as for example midwives or teachers, the AFV provides financial support for medical care and emergencies within their families.

Despite the takeover of the Taliban in 2021 and the restrictions of freedom, especially for women, the AFV continues their work as best as they can and with the safety of their local employees in mind.

After a village reached out to the AFV they have started to plan the reconstruction of an elementary school for girls that is in danger to collapse. I think this example shows that the organization has taken roots and is working in close contact with the communities living in the villages.

I hope you might like to give the Afghan Volunteer Women's Association a vote.

Drop by drop, a lake is formed. (Afghan proverb)