In 2008 OPAWC initiated one of its more ambitious projects, the Vocational Training Center in a western section of Kabul.  Not far from one of the more impoverished areas of the city, it serves as a portal of hope for Afshar district.  This was the main battle zone during the civil war from 1992-1994.

The idea was to bring services and opportunity to the population, to make it convenient for women who otherwise are in an impossible situation as regards mobility, time and energy.  Half the facility provided literacy classes while the other half trained women to work with textiles and beads in making traditional and stylish clothing and accessories.  In 2010 the fledgling operation expanded into two different programs, the Literacy Center funded by SAWA-Australia, and the Vocational Center funded by COSPE out of Italy.  300 women now receive training and education at these centers, most of them victims of war.

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