Hagar Afghanistan

www.hagarafghanistan.org

Afghanistan is a country in crisis with more than half of its people living below the poverty line. It faces major shortages of housing, clean water, electricity, access to medical care and food. Rape (both within and outside of marriage), forced marriage, prostitution, gender - based violence, and bonded labor are all common. Denial of rights to disabled women and children is widespread. The combination of these conditions have created a situation for the exploitation and trafficking of women to flourish.

Women and Children are often the most severely affected in conflict situations. The focus of Hagar’s work will be on the protection and rehabilitation of abused and exploited women and children. Hagar has, in 2008, established a presence in Afghanistan.

Population	32 million
Age structure	It is one of the youngest populations in the world where 45% are younger than 14 years
Life expectancy	44.5 years: Afghanistan has one of the lowest life expectancies in the world
Child mortality	20% of children die before they reach the age of five, the fourth worst record in the world
Unemployment	Afghanistan’s unemployment rate is 40%