Katrin Fakiri, an Artemis Fellow, shared her thoughts with a Thunderbird staff member about the business climate in Afghanistan and what it will take for women to be successful there.


Katrin

Thunderbird (T): Early this year, you visited Thunderbird's Glendale campus to take part in the Project Artemis program. Can you tell us a little about what you thought of the experience and how you think it will help you as you pursue your own entrepreneurial venture?

Katrin (K): "The experience at Thunderbird was one that I will not forget anytime soon. It was an honor to be invited to such a prestigious school, and I respect Thunderbird's initiative to reach out to Afghan women all the way across the world. I thought the program was very well-organized and the complementary sessions, such as classroom work along with exposure to the real business world, was very effective. It was inspiring for us to meet so many successful women, united and supporting one another in their business associations. Although I found the classroom sessions to be extremely valuable, what made the most impact on me was the connections we made and seeing how women who are in well-managed business associations can be very powerful. This is why we have decided to have an Artemis business association and model it after some of the business associations we visited."

T: What sort of business are you starting in Afghanistan?
K: "I would like to start an HR Consulting Firm. Human Resource departments and practitioners are a new thing here, but the overseas organizations who work in Afghanistan need to have HR services. Currently, companies are spending a lot of time and energy to streamline their organization's functions. If they had a properly running HR department, they could have better trained employees, processes and procedures in place in an environment that is very challenging for employers to work in."

T: What sort of help do you need to get your business up and running?
K: "I just got my business started just this month. I have never had my own business before so I am a bit nervous about how things will develop. Since this is an HR consulting company concentrating mostly on capacity building, customer service trainings, HR services and recruiting, I would love to get materials that would help me with my trainings."

T: Can you explain the business climate in Afghanistan and some of the difficulties you are experiencing there?
K: "The business climate is both exciting and challenging. Only the most adventurous, or shall we say visionary - depending on how you see them, investors are committing to business in Afghanistan. It's quite exciting to be part of rebuilding a country and for those who love a challenge and building something from nothing will be drawn to conducting business here. In addition, Afghanistan is introducing friendly investor laws to attract the private sector and has even established a one stop shop for investors to register businesses in less than one week. There are over 10 international commercial banks operating in Kabul. English is spoken by the large majority of the national workforce and on the computer.

"However, it's a difficult environment for several reasons: first and foremost is security. Although generally security is good, there are times when we go through a wave of incidents that unsettle everyone and disturbs business. The second reason is that the government still has not made a lot of improvements in public services and infrastructure in the past 2 years. Roads are in bad shape in Kabul, electricity is scarce, though it is getting better. The third challenge is that Kabul is an expensive place to live. Cost of living is very high compared to the other countries in the region. For example, the average rent price for an office or home can start from $3,000 - $12,000 USD a month!"

T: As you probably learned when you visited the school, Thunderbirds are a very adventurous bunch and often are the first ones to pursue opportunities for business in the developing parts of the world. What sort of opportunities do you see for foreign investment in Afghanistan?
K: "There are many opportunities for investment in Afghanistan. This is a country that is being rebuilt from practically zero. There are all sorts of opportunities, especially in the telecommunications sector, water and electricity, construction, rebuilding of factories and all the service businesses that would cater to the needs of these new sectors.

T: Of course, the world has heard about the restrictive environment the Taliban created for women. What is the business and social environment for women now? Is it continuing to change? Is it different in the rural and urban parts of the country?
K: "Afghanistan is a country in transition both politically and socially. This is why you might at times hear two conflicting perspectives on the situation of women in Afghanistan. To compare the environment now to the time of the Taliban and prior to them, the Mujahadeen, Afghan women have come a long way in just three short years, especially in the urban areas. Women are being encouraged to engage in business activities and currently there a few hundred women-owned businesses registered. However, the majority of women owned businesses are in the informal sector and involved in micro businesses… impressively they are in the tens of thousands. It is estimated that there are over 80,000 microfinance clients in Afghanistan and the majority of them are women.

"On the other hand, if you compare Afghan women's situations socially to Western standards or even regional standards, women's social status leaves a lot to be desired. Majority of women still do not have any rights even though it’s guaranteed in the constitution. Women are the most vulnerable members of this society. There is practically no legal protection as women are bound by cultural and religious norms. Even in the urban areas, successful women have to be very careful as they are under scrutiny. Often any steps that they might take towards social progress will be exploited by the conservative elements and will be seen as becoming "westernized." The positive news is that this country is in transition, and that changes happen everyday. We just have to accept that there will be sacrifices along the way."

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