Doing Business in Afghanistan

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Kandahar Treasure's employs 450 people and sells in Afghanistan, Canada, and the U.S. Courtesy Rangina Hamidi

Rangina Hamidi Courtesy Rangina Hamidi

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The aid world has its own rules and regulations of working within their system. If a program or project does not fit the criteria prescribed by the donor agency, benefiting from these aid programs becomes an impossible task. Donors' strict boundaries leave no room for creativity and unique methodologies to be experimented with by small organizations. A lot of times, the aid community's restrictions leave a lot of projects without the ability to gain sustainability.

Women Tailors Can't Compete

For instance, since the time of the Taliban, many aid organizations have given lots of funding to local organizations to train women how to become tailors. The funny thing is that we have yet to find a high-quality professional female tailor in town after being trained for almost 10 years now! If you estimate the amount of resources wasted for this particular training program, it is a shame that there is no final positive result in the end. But the value of the training is low; women who received it couldn't begin to compete with the male tailors.

I worked hard to understand the rules of the aid community, and I was successful among my peers in the five years that I have worked in Kandahar. However, I decided that the only way I can really help this community is through transforming the nonprofit work to a profitable company. That's because I believe in the idea that entrepreneurship can transform lives and help begin the process of rebuilding societies. I've already witnessed the impact. Women who work at Kandahar Treasure and other organizations are starting to be viewed as economic contributors. That increases their value in the household and in a society that has long devalued women.

We need the kind of aid programs and resources that can be used as a platform to create self-sustaining businesses. The three decades of war and destruction have created a nation of beggars. By focusing on private businesses and enhancing opportunities for ordinary Afghans to fill their days, we will not only help Afghanistan with building its economy, but also help Afghans find jobs so that they can depend on a peaceful and just way of making money for themselves and their families.

Business Training at Thunderbird

I was lucky to receive practical training through two great American-based programs aimed specifically at Afghan women. I learned the basic principles of business during a three-week program at Thunderbird University in Arizona. I experienced firsthand what is involved in doing business in the fashion industry as well as learning what it takes to import and export products through a project in New York (BusinessWeek.com, 6/7/05) sponsored by the Business Council for Peace.

I consider myself very lucky and capable of doing anything I want in the world today. With my education, experience, and language abilities, the opportunities are many for me. I have, however, chosen to continue my struggle with the women in Kandahar because this work gives me the most challenges and rewards. Living and working in the midst of a very destructive war is no easy job. However, I see hope when I see how the simple women have been able to transform their lifestyles with the little money that they earn through our business.

—as told to Stacy Perman

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