Multichannel retailer Monsoon Accessorize says its charitable trust will continue to support education projects and communities in Afghanistan, even as the Taliban takes control oft the country’s government.
The retailer’s Monsoon Accessorize Trust has been working with handicraft projects in the country since 1976, when Monsoon founder Peter Simon first travelled overland to Asia. Since then Monsoon has been been committed to ethically-sourced sustainable fashion. Its women’s and children’s clothing is sold online, through its stores and though third-party retailers.
The Monsoon Accessorize Trust has been supporting women and children education projects for more than 20 years in Kabul, and most recently committed to fund a school in Bamiyan serving a large carpet weaver community. The trust has partnered with local charities Turquoise Mountain in Kabul and Bamiyan, most recently to support two schools.
Previously, the Trust funded Christian Aid to rebuild silk cultivation by working with women’s groups in Herat to provide them with silkworms and train in silk production with the aim of enabling local women to earn an income and have a stronger voice in their communities.
Monsoon Accessorize said in a statement: “Recent events have made our commitment to our current project, supporting the education for over one hundred children and young people, even greater. Our project involves children of both genders up to the age of 12. At this time, more than any, they need our full support and we are investigating how to continue to provide the financial support and so continue their education and a respite from the current turmoil.”
Since 1994, the Monsoon Accessorize Trust has raised more than £6m for sustainable development projects around the world.
