Abdur with a drawing of his village, July 2009.

Abdur, 13, lives in a remote village in Buner, a district that was severely affected by the recent conflict. Traveling to his village is difficult — it can only be reached by traversing a winding, rocky road and driving through a stream. Until recently, Abdur says he could hear drones flying overhead every day. His family stayed inside, and schools were closed for months because the teachers feared for their lives.  

Although he is still young, Abdur is well-respected in his community because he is a "Hafiz-e-Quran," meaning he has learned the entire Quran by heart. Abdur is now reading the Pashto translation of the Quran so he can understand even more of the book's meaning.

For the past two weeks, one of Save the Children's mobile Child Friendly Spaces (CFS) has been visiting Abdur's village in order to give children there a chance to gather together, draw and paint, play board games, and engage in sports like badminton, cricket and soccer.  Each time the CFS visits this village, more than one hundred children attend. In the last two weeks, Save the Children's eight mobile CFS have reached over 2,300 children in conflict-affected areas. Save the Children has also established 34 stationary ones in host communities and camps — these spaces have benefitted over 12,000 displaced children.

Looking to the Future

Now that the mobile Child Friendly Space has begun visiting Abdur's village, the children have formed a cricket team. Besides playing cricket, Abdur also looks forward to drawing and painting there — before he didn't have any paper or markers.

A mobile Child Friendly Space unit serves children in Pakistan. July 2009

Abdur has big dreams and wants to return to school soon so that he can work towards becoming a doctor. He says, "I want to provide health services to people in my village and open a clinic here. There is no doctor in the village right now. I want my village to have a team of doctors."

In response to this massive humanitarian crisis brought on by recent conflict, Save the Children has reached an estimated 274,000 people — including approximately 164,000 children — with emergency healthcare, relief goods, and child protection, education and food distribution programs. As children and families begin to return home, we will continue to help them get access to medical services, regain their livelihoods and reestablish their lives.

Donate to the Pakistani Children in Crisis Fund.

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Last Updated August 2009