Geography

The Afghanistan’s National Action Plan (NAP) on UNSCR 1325 women, peace and security is developed to address the challenges women faced in the aftermath of war and conflict in Afghanistan.

Women are awarded minimized role in politics. Political activities are considered the special domain for men. Women are stressed that home is predominant place.

The past ten years in Afghanistan have proven to be a decade of remarkable progress in the lives of Afghan Women.

The complex challenges and opportunities of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, as enunciated in United National Security Council Resolution 1325 of 2000, and several subsequent resolutions, lend themselves to both a “cup half full” and a “cup half empty” interpretation.

A new chapter of Afghan history has been written. The Government of National Unity is formed. The Bilateral Security Agreement and the Status of Forces Agreement are signed with the United States and NATO.

Fieldwork for this case study was conducted in Kabul (Afghanistan) from 5-15 February 2013. Preparatory work and consultations were conducted prior to fieldwork, and several interviews that were not scheduled during the consultant‟s time in Afghanistan were conducted by phone or online subsequent to the field travel.

This case study is part of a larger project that explores women’s participation in different development programmes and projects in Afghanistan.

Decades of conflict in Afghanistan have resulted in extreme instability, poverty and gender inequality. The human toll resulting from foreign invasion, the subsequent civil war (1992-1996) and the current conditions is great.

This paper contends that, in spite of women’s sizable presence in Afghanistan’s Wolesi Jirga, the representation of women’ s gender interests remains minimal.

Unquestionably, the situation of Afghan women has been one of the most prominent areas of rhetorical focus of the international development community in the post- Taliban era.