From a young age, Risolat Gulmamadova was interested in starting her own business.

Niyozbegim, a 58-year-old woman, has lived in Roshorv village of Rushan in Tajikistan’s Badakhshon region her entire life.

After getting her master’s degree in finance at Kyrgyz National University, Sagynalieva Aigerim applied for jobs in her field unsuccessfully.

Firuz Khudoberdiev, from Chagev village, says his whole family is involved in the beekeeping business, in one way or another.

Iroda, a woman-owned, parent-led, public organization in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, helps children with autism or neurodevelopmental disabilities with socializing, learning, and growing.

This article was authored by Sarayu Agarwal, Program and Co-Creation Manager for Local Impact.

At thirty-four years old, Hamza has lived in the Khatlon region in southwestern Tajikistan for his entire life. A farmer, Hamza started to grow...

When their daughter was three, Nurzhan Tursunakunova and her husband started looking for a kindergarten but had difficulty finding affordable kindergartens with openings.

Roshtqala district of Gorno Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO) in Tajikistan is home to abundant fruits and gardens.

Nisso, now aged 49, was born and raised in Khorog of Tajikstan’s Badakhshan region.

Drawing on over 50 years of experience in international development, the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) is proud to launch The Learning Hub, a free...

This statement was first published on AKDN.org.

For generations, residents of the Derzud and Barzud villages have dreamed of having a good irrigation system.

Bakhtibekova Mehrangez was scrolling through Instagram last year when she saw a post from Tajik pop singer Madina that got her attention. Instead of...

In the fall of 2020, AKF USA launched the first-ever Virtual Voyage: Around the World with AKF. This digital journey allowed AKF donors to...

Kanat and Gulmira Adybaev live near Osh, Kyrgyz Republic, with their two children. Like many people living in their village of Jylkeldi, they make...

2020 was a busy year for Uasin Gishu County Youth Bunge Forum (UGCYB), a community-based organization in Kenya’s Uasin Gishu County.

In April 2020, Tajikistan diagnosed their first cases of COVID-19. As news of these cases spread across the country, many people were concerned because...

Our decades of work to build a strong foundation in health, education, and economic inclusion helped many endure these unprecedented times.

In July of 2020, 103-year-old Aziz Abdul Alim tested positive for COVID-19. He was admitted to the recently established COVID-19 Emergency Response Center in...

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to be a serious global health crisis, the Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) and the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN)...

In 2016, the University of Central Asia (UCA) opened its first undergraduate campus in Naryn, Kyrgyz Republic and welcomed the future class of 2021.

As the COVID-19 pandemic developed, medical centers around the world faced a shortage of medical equipment and supplies needed to care for patients. These...

Driving along the Kericho-Sotik highway by the Great Rift Valley in Kenya, the breath-taking landscape is full of hilly terrain, farmlands, and seemingly endless...

In the center of Murghab district in Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO), children under five years old did not have many learning options. The local...

As trucks carrying food packages reached Tajikistan’s Bartang Valley in late 2020, the residents of Basid village made their way to the food distribution...

On Saturday, March 20, Youth Ambassadors hosted the 2021 Youth Festival, a virtual showcase of globally inspired art, outreach, and solutions. The digital event...

This spring, Farzana Kabani ran the Woodlands Marathon in Texas to raise money for AKF USA. Farzana set a goal of raising $10,000, and...

In 2017, newly married and looking forward to graduating from her bachelor’s degree in management, Anisa began noticing problems with her eyesight. As she...

After Aida’s* children grew up and left home, she was determined to make a difference for other children in her community. She decided to...

Every day after she wakes up, Saidrahmonova Makhfirat prays, drinks her tea, and goes to her farm.

Nestled in the Pamir Mountains, Murghab district is on the eastern side of Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast (GBAO) in Tajikistan. Murghab is one of the...

As Hangoma went about her sophomore year at the University of Central Asia’s (UCA) campus in Khorog, Tajikistan, life changed quickly. Like many universities...

Due to COVID-19, many of the world’s children have been out of school and, in some developing countries, for more than six months. In...

Bilal Sirazhidin Uulu is a 26-year-old resident of Arslanbob village in the Jalal-Abad region of the Kyrgyz Republic. He lives in the village with...

Patna, the capital city of the Indian state of Bihar, sprawls along the South Bank of the river Ganga, in the northeastern part of...

AKF and the World Bank have partnered to support youth through community engagement efforts in the Kyrgyz Republic. Three projects are underway through this...

Roziyamo Kabirova lives in a remote village in the scenic Wakhan Valley, in Ishkoshim district of Tajikistan that borders Afghanistan and Pakistan. She enjoys...

Youth unemployment—particularly among rural youth—is a hot political issue in India, where more than 56 percent of secondary school students in India lack basic...

Anora, age 20, lives in a small village in the Khatlon region of Tajikistan. In early 2019, she gathered with other participants of the...

Batula Fayo Rasa, a young woman in northern Kenya, is the sixth child in a family of 11. Her parents are local farmers whose...

Mittal Vasava, age 20, was living in rural Gujarat when she learned from a friend about Yuva Junction. Mittal’s family belongs to India’s semi-nomadic...

For over 50 years, the Aga Khan Foundation has invested in communities across Africa and Asia to break the cycle of poverty and create...

Meeting the ever-changing demands and expectations of teaching during COVID-19 has been overwhelming for educators. While many teachers have remained positive and resilient, for...

When the COVID-19 pandemic reached Kenya, social and mainstream media were flooded with prevention messages. Though all these initiatives are important, many Kenyans, particularly...

In December 2019, 20-year-old Karishma completed a course at Yuva Junction, where she learned sewing skills to make women’s clothes. Now, she’s sewing face...