Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan – The U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) Promote: Women in Government (WIG) project, hosted a graduation ceremony to recognize 132 female interns who completed the project’s year-long internship program in Balkh province. The internship program equips women with the knowledge and skills to join the Afghan civil service. This set of graduates received a government-issued certificate that is equivalent to one year of work experience—making graduates eligible for government jobs.

The Afghan government, with USAID support, is committed to increasing the number of women in the civil service to 30 percent by 2020. This target will cultivate a civil service that is more responsive to the needs of all Afghan citizens—both men and women. Through the internship program, USAID is helping the Afghan government to meet its goal by providing targeted civil service and leadership trainings for female interns.

Between April 2015 and December 2018, over 2,000 women graduated from the year-long WIG internship program. The graduates are now applying for open positions in the civil service.

“Promote is slowly but surely breaking barriers by getting women employed at government offices. Congratulations to the interns who just graduated and congratulations to USAID Promote: WIG," said Jamila Ariamal, Balkh Provincial Governor's Office Gender Specialist.

In addition to honoring the internship graduates, USAID also acknowledged the 25 government agencies in Balkh that supported the internship program through on-the-job training and employment. Over 400 of WIG’s internship graduates are now employed in the target provinces of Balkh, Kabul, Kandahar, Nangarhar, and Herat.

USAID’s Promote program consists of four components: leadership development, civil service training, economic empowerment and civil society advocacy. This program has assisted over 50,000 young women across the country.

To provide feedback to the Promote Program, send an email to: KBLPromote@usaid.gov

With almost $17 billion spent on development programs in Afghanistan since 2002, USAID provides the largest bilateral civilian assistance program to Afghanistan. USAID partners with the government and people of Afghanistan to ensure economic growth led by the country’s private sector, to establish a democratic and capable state governed by the rule of law, and to provide basic health and education services for all Afghans.

• Press Release - Women Graduate from USAID's Civil Service Internship Program in Balkh (Dari)
• Press Release - Women Graduate from USAID's Civil Service Internship Program in Balkh (Pashto)