Supporting Access to Higher Education for Afghans

The Public Diplomacy Section (PDS) of the U.S. Mission to Afghanistan is pleased to announce an open competition for eligible organizations to submit applications to carry out a program aimed at supporting higher education opportunities for Afghans, in particular women and girls. Successful proposals will focus on at least one of three areas of support for higher education: 1) Individual and/or series of short online courses (at least three weeks and up to six months in duration) to assist educated young professional Afghans in maintaining or developing professional skills in target fields; 2) Mentorship, coaching, and/or networking support for young professionals to further develop their skills through relationships with other Afghans in their field and/or; 3) Post-secondary “bridge” programs that prepare students who have already studied at the secondary level but may lack an internationally recognized diploma or qualification for university admissions, or to otherwise prepare them for university studies. The overall objective is to support higher education opportunities for Afghan students and young professionals, particularly women and girls, inside Afghanistan, and to maintain an educated workforce in which will be the basis for political and economic stabilization in Afghanistan. PDS intends to issue awards for a period of performance between 24 to 36 months.