International Assistance Mission


The International Assistance Mission is a non-profit Christian development non-governmental organization working in Afghanistan since 1966. IAM runs projects in eye care, health, education and community development. IAM is registered in Geneva, Switzerland, and is the longest continuously serving NGO in Afghanistan, and only works in Afghanistan.

History

The International Afghan Mission was established in Kabul on February 2, 1966. It began from the efforts of teachers and medical specialists who were interested in working in Afghanistan. IAM's first projects were the National Organisation for Ophthalmic Rehabilitation, the Medical Assistance Program, a school for the visually impaired, and a literacy programme.
Over the next 40 years, more projects were added in engineering, maternal health, community development, English as a Foreign Language, disaster management, micro-enterprise development, mental health, and the study of languages. IAM trains Afghans in all of these roles.
The war with the Soviet Union, strife between local Mujahideen groups, and various changes in government have required the moving or closing of some projects at various times since 1966.
In 1978, the International Afghan Mission changed its name to the International Assistance Mission.
In August 2001, the Taliban expelled IAM from Afghanistan. One month later, due to the imminent attack from the USA following September 11, 2001; the Taliban expelled all aid groups from Afghanistan. After the fall of the Taliban, IAM was invited to return. This three-month period in 2001 remains the only time that IAM has not served in Afghanistan since 1966.
In November 2008, the Deputy Minister of Economy, Dr Nazir Ahmad, thanked IAM for more than 40 years of humanitarian work in Afghanistan. Since 1966, IAM has helped an estimated five million Afghans, particularly through its NOOR eye care work.
Ten members of an IAM Eye Camp team, including several doctors, were murdered in August 2010 in the Afghan province of Badakhshan.

Current projects

National Organisation for Ophthalmic Rehabilitation
The NOOR programme provides the vast majority of all ophthalmic care in Afghanistan. NOOR takes its name from a Persian word meaning “light”, and is the longest running IAM programme. It has referral eye hospitals in the main cities of Kabul, Mazar-i-Sharif, and Kandahar. NOOR also provides logistical support to the government eye hospitals in Kabul and Herat. NOOR is also providing eye care in more remotes parts of the country through Vision Centres.
In 2018, NOOR treated 191,325 patients and performed 10,290 surgeries. NOOR dispensed 28,304 pairs of glasses, and 375,619 bottles of eyedrops. NOOR has a particular emphasis on training and it runs a three-year ophthalmology residency programme. Almost all ophthalmologists and all ophthalmic technicians in Afghanistan have been trained by NOOR.
Community Development Project
IAM's Community Development Project works through a variety of projects that are designed to increase a community's capacity to meet their basic needs. Afghan facilitators and expatriate consultants work within remote communities for several years to help communities manage their own development in just and sustainable ways. CDP projects include food security, agriculture, literacy, maternal health, nutrition, and training in self-help groups, as well as the building of roads, wells and latrines.
In 2017, roughly 8,000 Afghans benefitted from the Community Development Project.
In the past, CDP has assisted thousands of people in Faryab, Ghor and Herat provinces. Currently, the CDP project continues in the Central Highlands.
Mental Health Programme
IAM has been working to improve services for and awareness of mental health issues since 1996. The Mental Health Training Centre was established in 1996 in response to the high suicide rate among women. It provides a unique role in the country, treating patients and training nurses and doctors who specialise in mental health provision for people who live in Western Afghanistan. The aim of this project has been to build Afghan capacity to manage and provide quality mental health services by providing: mental health training for doctors, nurses, and midwives working in community health facilities; training psychiatry residents in partnership with the Ministry of Health; and training psychosocial counselors to work in government clinics in remote communities across the West and South of Afghanistan. In 2017, 3,598 new patients were registered at MHTC, 64 psychosocial counselors graduated from a one-year training course and started to work in community health facilities, and 131 doctors and nurses received mental health training to better equip them to recognise and appropriately advise or refer on patients with mental health problems. In 2018, IAM was able to handover MHTC to the Government of Afghanistan, which was a key step towards the long-term sustainability of the project. IAM continues to provide technical support.
In 2018, IAM's Mental Health Programme had four key strands: the Positive Parenting Project, aiming to reduce levels of violence against children; the Community-Based Mental Health Project, aiming to achieve sustainable improvement in the lives of people with psychosocial disabilities and their families; the Child and Adolescent Psychiatry Project, working to improve the mental health and full inclusion into community life for children with psychocsocial disabilities; and the Youth Emotional Resiliency Project, which aims for sustainable improvement in the emotional resilience of young people in Herat Province.
English as a Foreign Language
The IAM EFL programme teaches intermediate and advanced levels of English to assist Afghans in their professional and academic careers.
In 2018, 47 students graduated from the pre-intermediate course, 39 students from the intermediate level, and 12 students from the upper intermediate level. In addition, 22 women graduated from out ladies only six-month elementary course, 7 students successfully completed an academic writing course, and 45 students participated in conversational classes. 47% of the students were women.
Language and Orientation Programme
IAM provides an orientation programme and language courses in Dari and Pashto for expatriate workers and diplomats in Afghanistan.
Professional training
In addition to the above, IAM continues to second professionals to train Afghans through Individual Service Assignments. In the past, this has included training Afghans in the government, hospitals, other NGOs, and private businesses. Most of these individuals have years of experience in Afghanistan and speak the local language.

Former projects

Wakhi Language Development
Wakhi is a minority language with no written form, and is spoken only in Wakhan, in north-eastern Afghanistan. WLD was launched in April 2009 to research, analyse and document Wakhi and develop easy reading materials, so that Wakhi speakers are able to receive education in their mother tongue. In 2010 this project was handed over to another NGO.
Hazarajat Community Health Project
Initially begun by IAM as a Mother & Child Health Clinic in 1999, this project expanded to include 157 Health Posts, 5 Basic Health Centers, and a Comprehensive Health Center. HCHP became responsible to provide the primary health service for the district in Lal-wa-Sarjangal. HCHP trained nurses, vaccinators, and community health supervisors. In 2008, it treated almost 30,000 patients. In May 2009, the responsibility of HCHP was handed over to an Afghan NGO.
Orthopedic Workshop and Physiotherapy Center
The OWPC aims to reduce the impact of disability in Faryab province. It trains Afghan staff to provide services to people with disabilities. In 2010, it provided over 1900 orthopaedic appliances and assistive devices, and provided physiotherapy to over 1000 people. OWPC also used Community-Based Rehabilitation to increase community awareness of disability issues, and to help disabled people with education, healthcare and livelihood development.
Physical Therapy Institute
PTI trained physical therapists with a three-year Diploma course, and trained physical therapy teachers. It also developed physical therapy materials and had an outpatient clinic.
Renewable Energy Sources in Afghanistan Project
RESAP worked to build up the local renewable energy industry throughout the country. It used Afghan-made micro-hydro plants and wind turbines to provide electricity for rural regions. RESAP also trained Afghan engineers and technicians to build and install these units.
Adult Learning and Education Facilitation
The ALEF project worked in three provinces to provide non-formal adult education and vocational training. Using folkbildning methods, ALEF offered learning circles in tailoring, mobile phone repair, computer skills, literacy, English language, maternal and infant health, and vocational counseling. It also provided training for trainers of adult learners.
Business Development Services
BDS taught very basic business skills and literacy to low-income Afghan women. Its aim is to contribute to the socio-economic development of families and communities by enabling them to run simple home-based businesses. In 2010, BDS taught 145 women, and 35 workers from other NGOs were trained as trainers.

Structure

The International Assistance Mission only works in Afghanistan and its Headquarters are in Kabul. IAM is directed by a Board of eight members who meet bi-annually, and a General Assembly that meets every two years. The General Assembly elects the Board, and the Board appoints the Executive Director.
IAM is registered as a non-profit association in Geneva, Switzerland. IAM is also registered in the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan under the Ministry of Economy. It was the first NGO to be re-registered under the new Afghan government in 2005.
IAM is a signatory to the Principles of Conduct for The International Red Cross and Red Crescent and NGOs in Disaster Response Programmes, and ascribes to the code that aid will not be used to further a particular political or religious standpoint. IAM fully commits to the standard that aid is given regardless of the race, creed or nationality of the recipients and without adverse distinction of any kind.

Staff

In 2019, IAM employs around 350 paid Afghan staff, and 20+ professional volunteers from Europe, North America, Asia and Oceania. Foreign staff members are required to learn a local language and the average length of assignment is 3 years. Some IAM expatriate staff have stayed over 20 years in Afghanistan. In 2009, a German nurse retired after 37 years of working with IAM in a remote rural area.
All IAM expatriate staff come as volunteers and are responsible for their own financial support.

Attacks and casualties

Twelve expat volunteers and two Afghan staff have been killed while working with IAM in Afghanistan. The second-most recent incident occurred in August 2010 when suspected Taliban militants ambushed and killed a team of 10 doctors and optometrists who were returning from a medical care trip to remote mountain villages in northeastern Afghanistan. Those killed were six Americans, two Afghans, one Briton, and one German.

2014 Herat shooting

On 24 July 2014 two Finnish IAM female aid workers were shot dead by two gunmen on motorbikes while riding in a taxi in Herat.

Funding

Projects are funded by foreign donor organisations, governments, the United Nations, private donations, and locally generated income. No project funds are used for expatriate salaries, allowances, home rents, or daily expenses.

Publications

;Publications in English
A collection of language books have been written to assist foreigners in learning the local languages.
The following medical textbooks were written by IAM doctors and personnel in Afghanistan to provide practical, relevant and affordable medical information.
;Publications in Dari
The following simple business skills books were written by IAM's BDS project to help low-income uneducated Afghan women into self-employment.
;Publications in Pashto