VZCZCXRO1928
PP RUEHDBU RUEHIK RUEHYG
DE RUEHBUL #1674/01 1030650
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
P 130650Z APR 06
FM AMEMBASSY KABUL
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC PRIORITY 9596
INFO RUCNAFG/AFGHANISTAN COLLECTIVE
RUCNIRA/IRAN COLLECTIVE
RHEHAAA/NSC WASHDC
RUEAIIA/CIA WASHDC
RHEFDIA/DIA WASHDC
RUEKJCS/OSD WASHDC
RUEKJCS/SECDEF WASHDC
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHDC//JF/UNMA//
RUEKJCS/JOINT STAFF WASHINGTON DC//J3//
RHMFISS/CDR USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFISS/HQ USCENTCOM MACDILL AFB FL
RUMICEA/JICCENT MACDILL AFB FL
RHMFIUU/COMSOCCENT MACDILL AFB FL
RUEATRS/DEPT OF TREASURY WASHDC
RUCNDT/USMISSION USUN NEW YORK 2432
RUEHNO/USMISSION USNATO 2629
RUEHGV/USMISSION GENEVA 5834
RUEHUNV/USMISSION UNVIE VIENNA 1273

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KABUL 001674 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
RELEASABLE TO NATO/AUST/NZ/ISAF 
 
STATE FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A, S/CRS, SCA/PAB, S/CT, 
EUR/RPM 
STATE PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG 
NSC FOR AHARRIMAN, KAMEND 
CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76, POLAD 
 
E.O. 12958 N/A 
TAGS: PGOV SOCI EAID AF
SUBJECT: PRT/SHARANA - WOMEN'S TRAINING BEGINS IN 
PAKTIKA 
 
KABUL 00001674  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  In the months of March and April, 
PRT Sharana funded and conducted Paktika's first 
women's sewing skills and literacy training 
activities.  These activities trained a total of 38 
women from Sharana, Paktika's capital, and Orgun-e, 
the province's largest population center.  The women 
were trained on the basics of sewing with Chinese- 
made hand-operated sewing machines provided by the 
PRT as well as in basic Pashto literacy skills.  At 
the completion of the ten-day training program each 
of the women received a new sewing machine and the 
materials that they had used during the classes. 
These were some of the first efforts to reach out 
directly to women in the remote and strongly 
traditional province of Paktika.  Key to this 
successful effort was the work of two female 
American soldiers assigned to PRT Sharana, who were 
able to bridge the gender gap with the local women 
and convince them to attend the classes.  All of the 
women trained in Sharana were ethnically Pashtun and 
all of the women trained in Orgun-e were Tajiks. 
While Paktika is predominately Pashtun, a 
significant minority of Tajiks live and do business 
in Orgun-e.  End summary. 
 
Literacy and Sewing for Paktika's Women 
--------------------------------------- 
 
¶2. (SBU) Two American Civil Affairs women soldiers 
from PRT Sharana have spearheaded a program to bring 
basic education and sewing skills to women in one of 
Afghanistan's most remote and undeveloped provinces. 
Using the U.S. military's Commander's Emergency 
Relief Program (CERP) funds, PRT Sharana has moved 
past basic construction and humanitarian assistance 
missions to an active program of human resource 
development.  The first programs under this 
initiative were designed to address the critical 
skill shortages among Afghan women in Paktika 
province.  Beginning in March and continued into 
April thirty eight of Paktika's women, both Pashtun 
and Tajik, have been trained in basic Pashto 
literacy and sewing skills under these programs. 
 
American Women Go Where No Man Can Go 
------------------------------------- 
 
¶3. (SBU) Undaunted by the difficulties of addressing 
women's issues in a traditionally male-dominated 
social order, the PRT's women soldiers worked 
closely with Paktika's Director of Women's Affairs 
to get these programs off the ground.  Persevering 
when the director found excuses not to proceed, the 
PRT soldiers initially shouldered much of the burden 
of organizing the events while encouraging the 
director to become more engaged.  Obtaining 
instructors from Kabul and procuring locally 
available sewing machines and material, the PRT 
soldiers also strictly monitored the finances made 
available to the Director of Women's affairs to 
ensure that the money was allocated appropriately. 
After receiving guidance and assistance from the 
PRT, the Director of Women's Affairs was able to set 
up and successfully run another such event in 
Paktika's largest town of Orgun-e with only minimum 
 
KABUL 00001674  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
guidance from the PRT.  Critical to this success was 
the ability of the PRT's women soldiers to talk 
directly and frankly to the Director of Women's 
Affairs and the women participating in the training 
events, something that would have been impossible 
for a man, especially an outsider, to do. 
 
Comment 
------- 
 
¶4. (SBU) Paktika desperately needs more human 
development programs.  The women taking the literacy 
and sewing classes were all illiterate and nearly 
all are widows with little or no means of making a 
living.  They claimed to have no fear of reprisals 
from Taliban or other anti-government elements due 
to their participation in the programs and requested 
that more such programs take place throughout 
Paktika.  These programs have proven popular, and 
the PRT has received multiple requests from women 
for training on other skills and in other areas of 
the province.   Paktika has moved forward remarkably 
in the last year with security, road, district 
center, and communications infrastructure 
construction.  The military now has begun the softer 
human development work so desperately needed in 
Paktika.  This important work should be expanded 
along with the more traditional infrastructure 
projects in order to reach individuals who may not 
benefit directly from the larger building and 
construction projects. 
 
NORLAND