CAHP is an affiliated interest group of PEGASUS Institute and is a part of our larger institutional network.
Purpose
Canadians for Afghan Health and Peace (CAHP) is an interest group of Canadian volunteers committed to support Afghans in their quest to improve their health, address their settlement needs and aim for overall peace.
Who
Concerned Canadian citizens who want to mitigate the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and provide support for those impacted. Members come from a variety of backgrounds and bring personal and professional expertise in navigating immigration and settlement processes, addressing health care and education needs, and advocating for change.
CAHP Mission
Our mission is to improve lives through advocacy and awareness-raising, settlement support, health services and psychosocial education, and promoting national reconciliation and a culture of peace. To also further support the people of Afghanistan both inside and outside their country, including those seeking asylum, going through settlement process and/or facing any other humanitarian challenges.
Scope of Work
Bringing Afghans to Safety-Negotiation with IRCC to make processes easier; Reaching out to Canadian religious institutions and cultural associations for private sponsorship for Afghans
- Bringing Afghans to Safety-Negotiation with IRCC to make processes easier; Reaching out to Canadian religious institutions and cultural associations for private sponsorship for Afghans
- Settlement, health care and counseling
- Humanitarian and development support
- Administration, awareness raising and public education
Launching of CAHP through PEGASUS Institute Webinar
● Senator Salma Ataullahjan, Chair of the Senate Standing Committee on Human Rights, committed to issues affecting women and youth in Afghanistan and four Afghan-origin physicians:
● Dr. Fawad Akbari ,Deputy Director of Programs and Partnerships with the Aga Khan Foundation Board member Canadian Women for Women in Afghanistan (CW4W-Afg) and Canadian Afghan Association of Health Professionals (CAAHP)
● Dr. Saber Perdes, International Relations Coordinator at the Afghanistan National Public Health Association (ANPHA) who migrated to Canada in August
● Dr. Seddiq Weera, who went from being a political prisoner for 41/2 years opposing the Soviets, to work with the Afghan Ministry of Education in the last two decades promoting a culture of peace authoring a textbook on Life Skills used in all Afghan public schools since 2004 and
● Dr. Kazim Hizbullah, Global Health Expert and Member of the Ottawa Coalition for Afghanistan
Roundtable recommendations will be shared with stakeholders including government representatives, policy makers, and those working directly with the Afghan Canadians.
Roundtable Meeting Notes
Discussion with Paul Spiegel
PEGASUS Institute hosted a discussion with CAHP and Paul Spiegel of UNHCR and Johns Hopkins after his two week factfinding mission to Afghanistan looking at health and food security in December.
“Dialogue Series on Afghan Refugee Health and Well-being”-Farah Ahmad, York University
Session #1- February 18th, 2022 2:00-3:30 p.m. (ET) on “Food, Health & Well-being: Global to Local”
Session #2- March 18th, 2022 2:00- 3:00 p.m. (ET) “Women’s Empowerment Health & Well-being”
Session #3 on May 6 @ 2p on “Cultural Healing Practices for Health and Well-being
Consortium of Universities for Global Health (CUGH) Panel “Impacts of war on health in Afghanistan: intersections with education, peacebuilding, and resettlement”
Organized by Athena Madan, Roayl Roads University
The re-emergence of the Taliban in August 2021 has had devastating, broad impacts on the health of Afghan people. In this panel, we discuss the current state of public health in Afghanistan, how global health actors might support or intervene, and ways global health and allied actors might advocate within their respective communities of practice. We pay particular attention to the interrelatedness of health with education, peacebuilding, and resettlement systems; and highlight how ethnicity, religious affiliation, and gender exacerbate oppressions. We will also explore the impact of displacement on health and wellbeing in the current contexts of the Taliban.
To provide an overview of the breadth of health impacts of war and violence in the Afghan context
- To illustrate how violence and humanitarian crises are linked to public health
- To examine political and social forces underpinning health and long-term health outcomes
- To identify viable options for effective advocacy in humanitarian contexts
- To support health workers supporting refugee resettlement with guidance about some of the physical and psychosocial conditions faced by Afghan refugees
Panelists
· Farah Ahmad (Speaker), PhD MPH MBBS, Associate Professor, York University School of Health Policy & Management, Toronto, Canada.
· Neil Arya (Moderator), MD DLitt, Assistant Clinical Professor, Family Medicine, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada; and Adjunct Professor, Environment and Resource Studies, University of Waterloo, Canada.
· Anushka Ataullahjan (Speaker), PhD, MSc, BSc, Assistant Professor, Dalla Lana School of Public Health, University of Toronto, Canada.
· Umair Khan (Speaker). Canada.
· Athena Madan (Speaker). PhD, Assistant Professor, School of Humanitarian Studies, Royal Roads University, Victoria BC Canada.
· Saber Perdes (Speaker), MD MPH, Embassy of Canada to Afghanistan, Ottawa, Canada.
· Paul Spiegel (Speaker). MD, Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Humanitarian Health; Professor, Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, U.S.A.
· Seddiq Weera (Speaker). MSc PhD, Research Coordinator, McMaster University, Hamilton, Canada.