Islamic Republic of Afghanistan - Enhanced Integrated Framework ...

Current Situation in the SectorAchievements: A great deal of work has beendone since the establishment of the transitionalgovernment of Afghanistan in terms of religiousaffairs including:• Afghanistan is an Islamic Republic• The Constitution is fully based on the principleof Islam;• The Constitution states in Article 2: “Thesacred religion of Islam is the religion ofthe Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Followersof other faiths shall be free withinthe bounds of law in the exercise and performanceof their religious rituals.”• Improved Hajj services and strengtheningof Ministry of Hajj and Endowment;• The construction and rehabilitation ofhundreds of new mosques and other holyplaces;• Restoration of the endowed properties extortedby individuals;• Inclusion of Islamic subjects in the newcurriculum of primary, secondary andhigher education systems;• Establishment and rehabilitation of the IslamicMadrasas and Dar-Ul-Hefazs;• Rehabilitation of the Department of theIslamic Sciences of the Science Academy;• Growth of the Islamic literature throughpublic and private media, “electronic, visualand audio”.Needs assessments: The rehabilitation andconstruction of religious schools is the mostpressing need for the sector. Additionally thereis a need to improve the Islamic female educationsystem and to hire an adequate number ofimams.Challenges and Constraints• Lack of qualified scholars’ and lack propertraining for the scholars;• Lack of qualified cadre in religious education;• Weak coordination among the differentreligious government and non-governmentinstitutions;• Low level of professional capacity: lack ofadequate facilities and competent professionalswhich hinders the effective implementationof programs;• Uncertain funding and the dependence ofthe religious institutions on private charities.A lack of adequate funding is one ofthe major constrain in the realization of thesector programs, which minimize the abilityof the government institutions to implementtheir projects.• Security problems: continued insecurity isa barrier to the implementation of the programsin some parts of the country.Policy Framework: Sector StrategyThe vision for the sector is to provide competentreligious services and raise religiousawareness of the public in order to promotetheir participation in the development programsof the Government. This will ultimatelylead to poverty reduction and the developmentof Afghanistan.Sector Priority Policies: the government willfocus on the following priorities:• Improve infrastructure for religious affairs:(mosques, shrines, holy places, religiousschools);• Improve the training and capacity of theImams, preachers, religious teachers andother scholars to raise public awarenessand to teach;• Finalize overall cultural curriculum forprimary and higher education;• Strengthen Hajj arrangement systems forpilgrims;• Support efforts of other government agenciesto improve religious literacy.Expected outcomes:• All Government activities will not contradictIslamic values;• Improved religious infrastructure;• Financial sustainability of religious affairssector will be achieved;• The religious education system will be improved;68Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS)