Informing humanitarians worldwide 24/7 — a service provided by UN OCHA

Afghanistan

American University in Afghanistan to train future leaders

Private school's curriculum includes business, computers, public policy

By Michael OToole, Washington File Staff Writer

Washington - When first lady Laura Bush, on her visit to Kabul March 30, announced that "The United States is supporting the establishment of the American University of Afghanistan with a multi-year commitment of more than 15 million dollars," it was one more step in the fulfillment of Sharief Fayez's dream.

Fayez was Afghanistan's minister of Higher Education until December 2004. Born in Afghanistan and educated in the United States, he dreamed of an institute in his homeland along the lines of the American Universities in Beirut and Cairo - a private institution with lectures and textbooks in English that would train new generations of Afghan professionals and leaders.

In July 2002, Fayed made his proposal known to the Coordinating Council for International Universities (CCIU), a public charity based in Arlington, Virginia, whose mission is to "support the creation of American-style international institutions." A year later, supported by a grant of $553,475 from the U.S. Trade and Development agency (USTDA), CCIU began a feasibility study on the new university.

The study was completed at the end of 2004. According to the study, a significant number of English-capable students "willing and able to pay $5,000 annually to make up initial freshman classes of 200 students each" already existed in Afghanistan and the North American Afghan community with the number expected to increase. Scholarships would be available for eligible students unable to afford the fee.

The study noted that the new Afghan government had already presented the new university with a 99-year lease on 42 acres of prime land in Kabul, near the new Parliament buildings. The site had been the location of the American School in Kabul until the Soviet invasion of 1979 and still contained several heavily damaged buildings of the former school as well as a dormitory built after the Soviet invasion.

The proposal calls for a coeducational university offering instruction in English, business administration, computer science and public policy and administration. The university's academic and financial models would meet the same regional accreditation standards that govern U.S. colleges. Its facilities would include such state-of-the-art capabilities as a digital library and a wireless data network to enable distance learning.

In December 2004 the university held a board of trustees meeting and elected Fayed president. On March 21 of this year, U.S. Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad commemorated the first steps in building the physical foundation for the new university. Fayed expects to enroll students for preparatory courses in mathematics and social sciences within a few months, with a full freshman class admitted about a year later.

Besides the funds announced by Laura Bush (to be provided through the U.S. Agency for International Development), the university is also relying on donations from private sources. Several Afghan businessmen have pledged donations. The American University of Afghanistan Foundation has been established in the United States and can be contacted by phone at (703) 534-5821.

The USTDA funded-study noted that the development of such a university imposes risks: an English-language university espousing American values could easily become a target for terrorists; possible political instability and/or lack of existing urban infrastructure makes sustaining such an institute difficult; attaining self-sufficiency is dependent upon Afghanistan's growth and stability; low income levels of most Afghan families make university education unaffordable.

The university's founders believe they can address these issues, however. They also believe that the opportunity to create a safe haven for democratic discourse, research and teaching that produces an entrepreneur class of Afghan men and women make the effort worthwhile.

According to Laura Bush, such "a modern facility with an international faculty to educate future leaders... will yield great results in the coming years."

(The Washington File is a product of the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)