Shahnaz Akhtar arrived in Tokyo from Pakistan on Sept. 3, a guest of Global Village's Fair Trade Co. in Jiyugaoka, which distributes and sells leather and silver work and embroidered, woven and knitted goods crafted by Afghan refugees under her guidance. The purpose in being here? "To gather information on products that Japan would like us to make. Exchange ideas. Promote awareness."
Soon after starting university studies in sociology in Peshawar, Shahnaz spent a three-month internship in a social welfare department observing the impact of programs on rural women.
"That decided me," she says. "After 15 years in development, I can say that progress is still slow. But when I visit the village where I was born, there's no hesitation among the girls. . . . They are clear about their future." Her own parents found it very hard to let go. Now girls just tell their parents what they have decided to do, and go for it. (Her elder daughter already wants to be a doctor.)