OVERVIEW

The main goal of SEA II is to improve the institutional capacity, operations, management, and programming of educational institutions and civil society organizations in Afghanistan that implement activities in line with the  higher and basic education needs of Afghanistan.  SEA II has three main components: (1) Programmatic Support to Targeted Organizations; (2) Capacity Building for Improved Sustainability to help build the long-term viability of selected organizations and institutions; and 3) Flexible Education Grants Program.

The Flexible Education Grants Program (FEGP) is designed to respond to emerging and strategic needs and innovative approaches from educational organizations working in Afghanistan. The FEGP allows USAID and the implementing partners to respond quickly to needs in the education sector with targeted grants.

OBJECTIVES

1. To improve reading skills of students in grades one to three and introduce adults to reading and writing.
2. To develop the organizational capacity of Afghan education institutions with the aim of enhancing governance, diversifying funding streams, and reducing dependency.
3. To strengthen the education system to prepare Afghan youth for employment.
4. To provide scholarships to selected young Afghan women to complete undergraduate and post-graduate programs.

ACTIVITIES

• Provide books and reading materials to communities, including rural communities, to promote a culture of reading Train teachers, especially females, in Science and Mathematics to enhance the quality of Science and Mathematics education
• Provide Kankor examination and preparation classes to female students
• Use technology to improve reading in primary grades
• Recruit and assign Teach for Afghanistan’s Fellows in secondary schools to teach Science, Mathematics, and English
• Provide scholarships and support for 720 women to complete their bachelor’s degrees in fields of study that will enable them to find gainful employment
• Provide scholarships and support for 180 women in regional universities that will enable them to seek advancement in their chosen field of work
• Provide internship opportunities in the Attorney General's Office for young women graduates of Law and Sharia
• Provide technical support to the Ministry of Education’s Restructuring program.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Completed pre-entry training for over 240 young women Law and Sharia graduates selected for the Attorney General Office internship program
• Helped 530 women improve their reading skills through literacy classes and mobile libraries.
• Trained 950 Science and Mathematics teachers from 60 schools in three provinces (Kandahar, Khost, and Badakhshan)
• Equipped the General Directorate of Science and Educational Technology Departments with laboratory equipment
• Enrolled over 230 young women in private universities and selected 240 female students for the second round of the scholarship program
• Selected 300 girls' high schools from 34 provinces for Kankor examination preparation support and provided more than 81,000 copies of the Kankor examination and preparation guides, amounting to 1,200 tablets and 220 solar panels.
• Assigned 80 Teach for Afghanistan’s Fellows to teach in 21 schools across four districts in Nangarhar.
• Introduced the use of educational technology for teaching reading in grades 1-2