Building Culturally Relevant Social Work for Children in Afghanistan

1. Building Culturally Relevant Social Work for Children in Afghanistan Developing curriculum from the ground up

2. What is this project? • Joint Project of UNICEF and Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs, Martyrs and the Disabled (MOLSAMD), the Hunter College School of Social Work of the City University of New York and the Boston College Graduate School of Social Work • Purpose- to support the development of an indigenous, professional social work for children in Afghanistan, based on local knowledgeand culture that meet regional and global professional standards Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

3. Objectives of the Presentation • To provide a brief background on Afghanistan • To describe the methodology used to develop an authentic professional social work • To learn from others about ways to deepen and improve our work Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

4. Brief Background • Since 1979, Afghanistan has been the site of war and military occupation as great powers and competing ideologies from around the world battle on its soil (International Crisis Group, 2012) • Afghanistan had been a country that prided itself on the care and protection of children, through intricate layers of community and family based systems • With war and its sequelae, those systems have broken down or become subject to abuse Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

5. Social Work for Children in the Region • In all of the countries that neighbor Afghanistan, social work for children and families is a recognized profession supported by an academic qualification • Internationally recognized schools of social work have long existed in Iran, Pakistan and India, educating social workers on the BSW, MSW and PhD levels • China’s recently established university level social work programs have rapidly expanded throughout the country • Degree level programs in social work are newly established in the university systems of Uzbekistan and Tajikistan Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

6. Why national academic credentials for social work? Academically qualified social workers trained in their own country insure quality standards • They oversee research on children’s wellbeing • They insure that local interests and values are protected • They direct resources where they are needed Academically qualified social workers provide indigenous, high quality care • They insure that community standards are maintained while children and families are protected • They work with communities to prevent abuse, create opportunities and support development Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

7. Academic Social Work for Afghanistan • The leading public university, Kabul University has committed to establishinga social work department within the Faculty of Social Sciences • Before such a department could be launched, a draft curriculum had to be developed Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

8. The DaCUM Method • The DaCUM Method (Develop a Curriculum) is one way to learn how to define and elaborate a profession based on knowledge from practitioners, service uses, and local “experts” • Participants were recruited from governmental and non-governmental organizations engaged in community and agency work with children and families, as well as community leaders and other professionals Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

9. The DaCUM Method-Participant Recruitment Purposive Sample • Four distinct regions plus Kabul (Jalalabad, Herat, Mazar-i-Sharif, Kandahar) • Organizations (governmental, international non-governmental, Afghan non-governmental, indigenous community structures) • Role (community worker, social worker, manager, service user-grass roots and professional) Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

10. The DaCUM Method (con’t) Participants were grouped by role- community worker, social worker, manager, policy maker, grass roots service user, and professional service user. Participants were asked: • What is social work? • Who should be a social worker? • What must social workers know? • What must social workers know how to do? • What are the most important values needed to be a social worker? Responses were put into a chart format and coded by frequency and emphasis Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

11. Results • Many of the results were reflective of social workers everywhere • Others were unique, such as the need to differentiate between culture, values and Islamic law • The social work practitioners were deeply devoted to their work and anxious to share their technical knowledge • Community members and service users considered social work a vital pillar for development Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

12. Quotations from Participants “The social worker is the doctor of the society: The social worker diagnoses and treats social problems, both at their roots in society, and through the symptoms that appear in the community, the family, the child.” Program Director, Afghan NGO (Mr. Wahidullah Shinwari is an Afghan MSW, educated in Pakistan) Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

13. Quotations from Participants “This is my country, where shall I go? I have to work every day to make this place better for children. Now I want to hire qualified social workers to make my programs the best that they can be.” Afghan NGO Director (Engineer Youssef is the founder of an Afghan NGO that has worked throughout the last 20 years to help street working children and families) Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

14. Quotations from Participants • “We need to lift up our wives and children, even our daughters, so that we are not reduced to poverty and begging.” • “Those who come to help us must be honest people, understand Holy Koran, and use the knowledge to teach us to fight for ourselves, for our families and educate our people.” Community Elder from Kandahar Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

15. References and Contact Info Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

16. References • Bragin, M. (2002). Lost and Found: Addressing the needs of young people affected by the conflict in Afghanistan: needs assessment and program recommendations. UNICEF Afghanistan. • International Crisis Group (2011). Aid and conflict in Afghanistan. Asia Report Number 10.http://www.crisisgroup.org/en/regions/asia/south-asia/afghanistan/210-aid-and-conflict-in-afghanistan.aspx • Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Martyrs and Disabled. (2004). National strategy for children at risk. Kabul: Author. • UNICEF (2009). Advocacy paper: Social Work curriculum development. Kabul: Author http://www.crin.org/docs/Social%20Work%20Curriculum%20Development%20Advocacy%20Paper%205%20February%202009.pdf Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD

17. Contact Information Martha Bragin, PhD Hunter College School of Social Work City University of New York marthabragin@att.net Eileen Ihrig, MSW Boston College Graduate School of Social Work ihrig@bc.edu Hunter_BC_UNICEF_MoLSAMD