Profile of Shabaana - a grateful recipient.
This is the story of Shabaana (not her real name). She is a 46 year old widow who lives in northern Afghanistan.. She has a ready smile and is quick to joke with the staff of the Community Development Project.
Married at 14 years of age (not unusual for a village girl), Shabaana then moved to Mazar where she and her husband lived for the next twenty years. Together they had 5 children; 3 girls and 2 boys
When Shabaana’s husband died in a car accident, she was 33 she was left with 5 children aged from 0 -12 to support. As a widow Shabaana’s life was difficult and she struggled to sustain her family. She worked cleaning cotton, sewing and washing clothes to support her family.
CDP began work in Shabaana’s village in late 2003. When the project first started villagers were talking of abandoning the village – so acute were the water shortages. Residents report that during 15-20 day periods, fresh water was available for only 24 hours. However CDP’s work on deep wells, hand pumps and a reservoir has improved this situation tremendously. Not only has the infrastructure been built, but relationships between villagers have improved as they have sat together to plan projects and then cooperated to make them happen.
CDP’s work has had many positive effects on Shabaana’s life. She participated in one of the first micro-loans projects for women, using her US$50 loan to buy another donkey. This enabled her son to collect more brushwood during his trips to the mountains. She is soon to commence training to become a Basic Health Worker for her community. In a village with no pharmacies, or medical personnel, she will learn to give basic first aid and treatment to the sick, and if necessary refer them to the appropriate clinics or hospitals in the city.
Shabaana’s neighbours have also benefited from CDP’s work. Some have taken loans for buying wool, which they hand-spin and then re-sell to weavers. Others bought materials to sew hats which they sell at the local town, Grace How reported that
“The living way in our village has become quite different than before…Now, the problem of water has been solved and we can take water from the wells during the day and night…The women’s condition became better and they learned a lot of things and became open minded about furthering their prospects"
Shabaana – a follow up
This has been a hard year for Shabanna, though it started with promise and hope it ended with much sadness. Her eldest son, aged 20, married and left his mothers’ home to start his married life in a new home
Her son was one of the many men and boys in the community who leave at 1 am each morning up into the mountains where they collect brushwood, returning with their donkeys at 3 pm after a hard days work. The donkey he used was purchased through a loan. Now he lives elsewhere she no longer benefits from the donkey despite working hard to re-pay the loan that brought it. She gently cried as she said: “my heart has felt many troubles” with no husband she is feeling the loss of a male member of the house keenly.
As well as working in the office assisting CDP facilitators Shabanna has attended new health training this year. During the duration the health course Shabanna learnt how to give injections as well as other basic health practices.
Shabanna goes to the local town, 30 minutes away and purchases medication. For each injection that she gives she is paid 5 afghanis or an egg. Each week a few women or children come and visit her, sometimes knocking on her door in the middle of the night. “They come and knock on my door at one o clock in the morning”.
At least can afford to buy oil, bread and tea, which is more than many people in Afghanistan.
There are sleepless nights at the moment, though she is all smiles and quick to make a joke in public, at home she weeps and lies awake – asking why her son left her?
“I laugh outside but inside my heart is burst and I cry alone. Who can I tell but you and God, everyone else gossips but God”.
Source: Grace How - Development Worker