Mosques, Schools, Hospitals Made Accessible to Disabled Afghans

CPI has been at the forefront of developing practical guidelines for the construction of physical accessibility ramps in Afghanistan.

With special funding from the Weapons Removal and Abatement section of the U.S. Department of State's Political Military Affairs Department, CPI has developed pilot projects in conjunction with three of its implementing partners. Each partner undertook physical accessibility project sites at key public buildings in different provinces where unmet needs were prioritized and where security conditions permitted the projects to be undertaken.

In Kabul, Accessibility Organization for Afghan Disabled (AOAD) developed and implemented access ramps at four locations, including three mosques: a neighborhood mosque that functioned as a polling station in last year's parliamentary election; a larger community mosque with a rare co-educational madrassa; and one of the highest profile mosques in all of Afghanistan, the Eid Gah Mosque, where several VIPs regularly worship and where important funeral prayers of martyrs are held. For its fourth accessibility project, AOAD selected the Antoni Infectious Disease Hospital, an important referral site for tertiary care and the only such facility in the country.

In Kapisa Province, north of Kabul, Afghan Amputee Bicyclists for Rehabilitation and Recreation (AABRAR) developed and implemented access ramps at several diverse sites. These included the main mosque of the capital city, which became the only physically accessible mosque in the entire province, the Ministry of Information and Culture, and the Ministry of Education. Several public schools throughout the rural community were also ramp sites in the AABRAR project, each selected based on feedback from local authorities about their priorities.

In Balkh Province, in the north of Afghanistan, Afghan Landmine Survivor Organization (ALSO) constructed access ramps at several educational settings across Mazar-i Sharif, the main city of Balkh. The sites selected included co-educational elementary schools, boys' high schools, girls' high schools, and the Balkh University making it one of the few institutions of higher learning in the entire country with accessible buildings.

The photos linked to this posting are from field mission inspection visits conducted in December, January, and February by Matthew Rodieck (CPI-AFG Program Manager) and Zabiullah Azimi (CPI-AFG Program Coordinator).