AKDN Blog

Take Steps to Prevent Spread of H1N1 and Seasonal Flu, Urge FOCUS and Aga Khan Health Boards

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

FOCUS and the Aga Khan Health Boards have urged people to take steps to prevent the spread of H1N1 and the Seasonal Flu. The notice includes information on common flu symptoms and steps to avoid contracting the illness, as well as steps that can be taken to treat the various strains of flu, including the H1N1 subtype.

Remix Asia: A Catalyst for New Music

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Nineteen musicians from eight countries in the Middle East, North Africa and Central Asia participated in Remix Asia, a workshop and concert tour created in collaboration with the Aga Khan Music Initiative.

AKDN's Post-Earthquake Relief and Reconstruction Efforts in Kashmir

Sun, 4 Oct 2009 00:00:00 GMT

After the October 2005 earthquake devastated large parts of Kashmir on both sides of the Line of Control, as well as significant parts of the North West Frontier province in Pakistan, the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) responded, through its affiliate FOCUS, to provide relief assistance to communities on both sides of the Line of Control.

Learning Is an SMS Away: Mobile Phones in Education

Tue, 15 Sep 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Teachers in remote villages can now receive assistance from colleaugues in central locations through text messages on mobile phones -- a system being piloted by the Aga Khan University's Institute for Educational Development in East Africa (AKU-IED, EA).

UCA's School of Professional and Continuing Education Teaches Critical Skills for Central Asia Economies

Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The University of Central Asia’s (UCA) School of Professional and Continuing Education (SPCE) is training adults and young people in the critical skills needed in the new Central Asia economies, including accounting, business English and mountain guide training. Over 5000 people have graduated from the SPCE.

Social Audits in Afghanistan: Making Local Governance More Transparent

Mon, 8 Jun 2009 00:00:00 GMT

As Afghanistan struggles to rebuild a society which can supply its people’s needs after years of conflict, one of the most widespread and persistent complaints is of corruption and the lack of accountability in government. Social audits, which are carried out with the agreement of the community development council and the community, allow local people to "audit" how funds are used, pose questions about the progress of a development project and ask about staffing and maintenance costs.

Multi-Input Area Development

Wed, 29 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The concept of "multi-input area development" has gained currency in recent years, reflecting a new understanding of the complexity of sustainable development. AKDN's approach arose in the Northern Areas of Pakistan following a visit by His Highness the Aga Khan to the rural development programme in the 1980s. On that visit, the Aga Khan saw the rural support program expanding naturally into health and education, but he also saw a need for micro-insurance, environmental projects, seismic-resistant home construction, village planning and the restoration of cultural monuments. AKDN's "Multi-input Area Development" approach is now applied in programme areas throughout South and Central Asia, the Middle East and both East and West Africa.

Investing in Early Childhood Development (ECD)

Tue, 21 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

Early childhood lays critical foundations for a person’s entire life – a finding demonstrated not only by the latest advanced research in neuroscience and genetics but by nutrition and child development studies and programme evaluation data, including data from AKDN’s own programmes. Investments in Early Childhood Development (ECD) therefore offer outstanding returns, in both human and financial terms. The following paper explores approaches to ECD and the work of several AKDN agencies in this field.

Clean and Green

Fri, 17 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The district of Surkh-e-Parsa lies at the upper end of the Ghorband Valley, not far from where the road begins to climb the bare hills to the Shibar Pass. Three green valleys converge at the district centre of Lolinj. The local people grow wheat and tend their fruit trees, but they have always been poor. For them, even before the war, the notion of electricity was a distant dream.

MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship Awarded to AKU's Urban Health Program

Thu, 16 Apr 2009 00:00:00 GMT

The Talloires Network and the MacJannet Foundation today (16/04/2009) announced the winners of the first annual MacJannet Prize for Global Citizenship. The first place winner is the Urban Health Program based in Aga Khan University in Pakistan. From the press release: "This innovative and long-standing program run by Aga Khan University’s Department of Community Health Sciences provides critical health and socio-economic support to the squatter settlements of Karachi."