Meet Our Scholars Series — Farima

A determined and motivated young woman, Farima was only one year old when she lost her father, and along with her mother and sister, were taken in by her grandfather.  Eventual passing of her grandfather however left them with no source of livelihood.

As a very young girl, in a low/no income family, Farima was often under immense pressure by her father’s traditional family to get married, be it to a much older man with ties to the Taliban.  Farima however resisted fiercely and completed high school with a GPA of 93.3 out of 100 and entered University of Herat majoring in Economics.

However, with the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan and removal of all foreign NGOs, Farima lost her source of financial support and once again pressured to unwanted marriage.  A More Balanced World learned about her through a partner organization and offered her a scholarship to complete her degree.  In a note of appreciation to AMBW, Farima wrote: “… I owe my success and life to you and hope some day to help other girls in my situation, as you have done for me.”

But Farima’s excitement about resuming her education was short-lived.  In the last year of her program she learned that the Taliban is closing the university doors on girls; she was heartbroken, having overcome so many challenges and got so close to her goal. She wrote:   “… I’m devastated, feel depressed, unable to eat or sleep”

But ultimately Farima pulled herself up; enrolled in English language classes, took computer courses, formed an online book club, volunteered for nonprofits dedicated to girls education, and tried to stay hopeful that she will find a way to complete her bachelor’s and beyond.

In our latest correspondence, she wrote:

“… these days, I read a lot, and work on improving my language skills.  I’m also working on a project related to education of girls in Afghanistan and making their voices heard.

I’ve decided to start a small business while still in Afghanistan, but my goal is to continue my education abroad.”

Our dearest Farima, we have no doubt you will prevail!