Education is a child’s right. It is the way to peace and stability, toward erasing 30 years of war, oppression, poverty and despair.

In the past ten years, Afghanistan has made enormous progress. Schools have reopened and young people stream into classrooms. Together with the International Rescue Committee, Afghanistan continues to work hard to remove barriers to learning, resolved to improve opportunities for its children to fulfill their potential.

Afghanistan is at a crossroads. Six million children—half the nation’s number and more than ever before—are now enrolled in school. An amazing 1/3 of them are girls, whose education has traditionally been undervalued and restricted.

Afghan parents are committed to educating their children. Many risked their lives to keep children learning during the Taliban reign, running secret schools and protecting teachers. But education is still under threat, teachers are unequipped and schools are unsafe. Desperate to learn, and deserving of their right to do so, the future of a nation depends on them.

“What makes IRC special in my mind is that once it begins to help refugees in a certain area of the world, it will not leave until it is sure it is no longer needed...It goes to—and stays in—places no one wants to be.”

— Colin Powell, former US Secretary of State, IRC Overseer