Women Are Afghanistan's Veiled Reserve: Help Unleash Their Talents

The strategy of the Business Council for Peace (Bpeace) in Afghanistan is to focus on fast runners: high potential, literate, business women who demonstrate an intuitive business sense. We believe they are in the best position to create new jobs for other Afghans.

Our volunteers shape projects here and in Kabul that will create:

• Economic growth with the acceleration of fledging Afghan businesses into profitable, sustainable enterprises. The goal is to spark significant job creation and develop businesses in emerging growth industries.
• Networks of female Afghan entrepreneurs emerging to support each other’s development.
• A platform for the entrepreneurs to transform their new-found economic voices into voices for peace and democracy in their communities.
• Long-term mutual understanding and partnerships among Americans and Afghans through people-to-people exchange.

The Bpeace Apprentice Road Trip (BART)

The Bpeace Apprentice Road Trip is an unprecedented opportunity for Afghan businesswomen to gain practical experience in the U.S. in their chosen industries. Bpeace will bring 12 Afghan women entrepreneurs working in non-traditional and non-handicraft industries to the US in 2008 for three-week internships and apprenticeships with different firms.The Bpeace Apprentice Road Trip to the U.S. will be the highlight of a Bpeace three-year program commencing April 2007 where successful American businesspeople will train Afghan entrepreneurs in both Afghanistan and Dubai; assess their progress; distance mentor them by email and phone; provide access to financing and, in some cases, to international markets. After 18 months in the Bpeace program and receiving training and mentoring to strengthen their businesses, as well as improve their English and computer skills, the qualifying Afghan businesswomen will make the trip to the US in 2008.

The outcomes of the three-year program and of its centerpiece, the Bpeace Apprentice Road Trip, will be:

• Economic growth with the acceleration of fledging Afghan businesses into profitable, sustainable enterprises. The goal is to spark significant job creation and develop businesses in emerging growth industries.
• The Afghan entrepreneurs forming themselves into their own peer or industry-specific networks to support each others development.
• The entrepreneurs transforming their new found economic voices into voices for peace and democracy in their communities.
• Long-term mutual understanding and partnerships among Americans and Afghans through this multi-phased people-to-people exchange.

Style Road Trip

In 2005, those women in the Bpeace program who are engaged in apparel, accessories and home décor manufacturing businesses came to New York's 7thAvenue where they worked with top business leaders and educators in an intensive three-week program.They attended specially-tailored classes at the Fashion Institute of Technologyand on-site work sessions with designers and retailers. They returned home toimprove their products, grow their businesses, and train others. Each Afghan womanin the program is matched to a Bpeace mentor for three years.

Typical Activities of Bpeace Members to Assist Bpeace Associates

• Distance mentoring the Afghan women by email and phone calls.
• Introducing US retailers to their embroidery and other products.
• Fundraising to provide them raw materials and in-country training.
• Traveling to Kabul to consult with the Bpeace associates and government ministers.

What We Need

We have a lot of momentum in Afghanistan. We are in need of additional business volunteers to act as distance mentors and the funds to deepen the resources we offer the Afghan associates in our program.

Join the Bpeace Afghan Team. We are actively recruiting volunteers who have the skills and networks to help Afghan women grow their businesses or who have the technology, public relations and fundraising skills to keep our program efficient and effective. Join.

Consider a donation. We need to raise $160,000 to complete the following programs in 2007: launch an Economic Development Fund to help the entrepreneurs in our program gain access to financing to grow their businesses; provide English and computer training for the women in our program and their husbands; hire a full-time on-the-ground advisor in Kabul for the Afghan women in our program; create training modules. Donate.

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