MORE GOOD STUFF

Here is an article which was published in our local newspaper this morning. It will give you an idea of the good that is made possible because of our troops being in Afghanistan.

Canada making difference in Afghanistan, adviser says

MEGAN WALSH

The Guardian

People don’t see the good being done in Afghanistan, only the bad, says a special adviser to the director general of the Afghanistan Task Force, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.Speaking in Charlottetown Thursday, Diana Youdell said Canada is making a huge difference in Afghanistan but people don’t focus on that. People tend to only see the conflict that’s going on during a crisis, she said. It’s small stuff being done to help but it’s effective, she said.The UNICEF Women’s Literacy Program focuses on the rights and equality of women and it has enhanced the role of women and girls in Afghan society, Youdell said. Over six million children are in school today, two- thirds of them girls, as opposed to the 700,000 boys and no girls who were in school in 2001. The help from UNICEF has made this possible, she said.Eighty three per cent of Afghans now have basic health care in comparison to the nine per cent who had it in 2004, she said.

Youdell noted the criticism that things are not moving fast enough to help these people, but she said it takes time to get where you need to be.“There are no quick fixes or magic answers.” People are working hard to help with the development of these countries in need, Youdell said.Microfinance Investment Support Facility for Afghanistan is a program that gave out 405,000 savings and small loans to clients in 23 out of the 34 Afghan provinces. Two-thirds of the loans were given to women.These loans are really helping people out, she said. Youdell knows of one woman who began making wedding veils at home and her business was doing so well she had to expand and hire people to help her out.

Canada, as part of a UN- mandated and NATO-led international mission, is in Afghanistan at the request of a democratically elected Afghanistan government, she said.Right now there are 42,000 troops in Afghanistan, with 2,500 being from Canada and 15,100 from the U.S.

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