Quetta, Balochistan, 14 February 2025 — The International Rescue Committee (IRC) and the European Union (EU) begin another two-year collaboration to help improve access to protection, health, and education services to Afghan refugees and their host communities within three districts of the Balochistan province: Chaman, Killa Abdullah and Pishin. This project aims to deliver a coordinated integrated program under Health, Protection and Education in refugee hosted districts. Centric to program delivery is a holistic three-tiered approach to address needs holistically at the individual, community, and system levels, ensuring immediate relief while fostering resilience and sustainable change.
Aligned with the Afghan Regional Refugee Plan (RRP) 2024-2025, this project will deliver essential and life-sustaining assistance such as protection, health, and education services to address the diverse needs of vulnerable refugee groups, including women and children. A striking 49% of girls and 32% of women report vulnerability to harassment, 41% of whom also mention suffering violence and abuse within the family. An additional hurdle for girls stems from cultural barrier of being denied education.
A significant number of Afghan refugees have no access to basic services due to restricted movement, lack of information, violence, exploitation and discriminatory harassment. Therefore, particular attention will be paid to ensure specific needs are met through targeted services. Findings have also highlighted an increased number of gender-based violence reported by women, leading to psychological trauma and stress worsened by insufficient access to mental and other health services.Key factors barring access to education include the lack of schools in close vicinity, the substandard quality of education, teacher absenteeism, and underdeveloped school infrastructures.
With crucial support from the EU, the primary aims of this project take all these factors into account in order to facilitate legal support through counselling and disseminating information, mitigating the risk and violence on those most vulnerable (women, children and the elderly), offering primary, reproductive, and psychological healthcare, rehabilitating health infrastructures, ensuring access to schools and creating safe learning environments within education systems.
The action’s multi-level approach—in offering services on individual, community and systemic levels—is developed in consultation with departments of health, education, social welfare, and districts’ administration. This collaboration seeks to strengthen community support centres, health facilities, and local educational systems that will complement the already ongoing aid interventions in place by the IRC.
Taheeni Thammannagoda, Head of EU Humanitarian Aid in Pakistan, explains:
“Pakistan is confronted with a unique set of humanitarian challenges as displaced communities, including both registered and unregistered Afghan refugees, are in critical need of consistent access to healthcare, education, and protection. It remains vital for the international community to sustain their support and funding for aid."
Waqas Dar, IRC Pakistan Country Director, said:
“The IRC’s partnership with the European Union has been essential in providing aid and protection to vulnerable Afghan refugees. Pakistan still hosts 3 million Afghan refugees as of October 2024, 24% of which inhabit Balochistan. We remain diligently committed to helping Afghan refugees of various legal statuses and encourage donors to contribute what they can to prevent the worsening conditions of countless lives.”
The International Rescue Committee partners with the European Union to provide life-saving support to people caught in conflict and disasters around the world. Our work funded by the EU enables people to survive, recover and rebuild their lives.