You have to keep going; you have to find hope, pride, and happiness, and feel content when you see a single life changed. We do see that through our work, and that’s what keeps us motivated and going forward. I have days when I want to quit, where I think that’s it. But I also know that if we don’t do this work, then who’s going to do it?”

Fajer Rabia Pasha is the Executive Director of the Pakistan Alliance for Girls Education (PAGE), a civil society organization working to ensure every girl in Pakistan has access to quality education. PAGE has implemented a two-year project, Action for Gender Equity and Socio-Economic Uplift of Displaced Afghan Women and Girls, as part of the WPHF Funding Initiative on Forced Displacement, a collaborative effort between the United Nations Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development(BMZ).

By advocating for policy change and mobilizing resources toward education, PAGE is working to improve the literacy and economic well-being of young women and girls in Pakistan, including those displaced from Afghanistan. With Pakistan raking the fifth largest asylum-seeker hosting country in the world – predominantly sheltering Afghan refugees –this project focuses on uplifting displaced Afghan women and girls by fostering their economic empowerment and overall socio-economic conditions. 

Through this initiative, PAGE has reached 600 Afghan children (mostly girls) by offering non-formal education opportunities designed to meet their specific needs. It has also set up 12-week language and culture classes for Afghan women and launched several women’s economic uplift entrepreneurship programs building on the skills of refugee women. Additionally, PAGE has trained 15 civil society organizations on gender-responsive education, strengthening the broader ecosystem supporting displaced women and girls.  

For Fajer, developing women’s skills in financial management and digital entrepreneurship has a ripple effect – when they can earn an income, they are better equipped to take care of their daughters. Acknowledging the high dropout rate in Pakistan, especially among refugee communities, PAGE is committed to creating long-term impacts by supporting mothers to start businesses and generate their own income – hence ensuring that future generations of girls not only stay in school but also thrive. 

When asked about her motivation, Fajer doesn’t shy away from addressing the reality of her situation, revealing the strength and resilience that drive her forward:

“We try to look at the root causes of the issues and address them. You have millions of girls who drop out of school, and then you’re in a cycle of poverty and illiteracy. It just carries on. Within that cycle, these girls grow up with no understanding of their rights… When you see the scope of the challenges – and you know they can be fixed – you realize that women and girls can have a better life.”

To read the full article head over to its original place of publishing wphfund.org