We Are Winning: Ruxted Group

I'll let the stats speak for themselves:

1. Millions of girls are back in school with 400,000 new female students starting school for the first time this year;

2. Over 100,000 women benefited from micro finance loans to set up their own business;

3. Over a quarter of parliamentarians are women;

4. Over 7 million girls and boys are in school or higher education;

5. 83% of the population now has access to medical facilities, compared to 9 percent in 2004;

6. 76% of children under the age of five have been immunized against childhood diseases;

7. More than 4000 medical facilities opened since 2004;

8. Over 600 midwives were trained and deployed in every province of Afghanistan;

9. GDP growth estimates of between12-14% for the current year;

10. Government revenues increased by around 25% from 2005/06 to 2006/07;

11. Income per capita of $355, compared to $180 three years ago;

12. Afghanistan is one of the fastest growing economies in South-East Asia;

13. Over 4000 km of roads have been completed;

14. Work has begun on 20,000 new homes for Afghans returning to Kabul;

15. Over 1 billion square metres (roughly 32 km X 32 km) of mine contaminated land cleared;

16. 10 universities are operating around the country, against one (barely functioning) under the Taliban;

17. 17,000 communities benefited from development programmes such as wells, schools, hospitals and roads through the Government’s National Solidarity Program (NSP).

18. 10% of Afghans now own a mobile phone, compared to 2 lines per 1000 people in 2001;

19. 150 cities across Afghanistan now have access to mobile phone networks and internet provider services; and

20. 7 national TV stations (6 private); numerous radio networks, plus a diverse and increasingly robust and professional print media are up and running.

Be sure to read the whole report ... because the list of positive facts and information goes on and on and on with Canuck specific data included.