About PARSA in 2007

Throughout its history, PARSA has been and continues to be supported primarily by a wide community of small donors. During the Taliban regime, this grassroots support allowed Mary MacMakin to operate secret schools and economic programs for women, and to sustain her programs under very difficult circumstances. In post-war Afghanistan in 2007, this grassroots support has allowed PARSA to be highly creative in program development and to take the lead in the NGO community advocating at different levels in the Afghan government to initiate change in social protection programs that serve the disabled, women "head of households", orphans and the impoverished.

Under Marnie Gustavson’s directorship, PARSA has begun two groundbreaking programs in close partnership with two government agencies. With the Afghan Red Crescent Society (ARCS), PARSA is rehabilitating and modernizing the "Marastoons" or "places that give help" — a cultural tradition of social protection for disabled, widows and orphans. With the Ministry of Social Affairs, PARSA is working to initiate change in the orphanage system so that the most vulnerable children in Afghanistan can have care in the post conflict country. PARSA’s commitment is to support Afghan professionals and leaders as they develop social protection programs for vulnerable Afghan people. We have an integrated program approach and we work with other agencies and government organizations while we deliver our programs to leverage our work, transfer our expertise to other agencies, and contribute to the development of good social protection systems and policy.