There have been a couple of villages that have been enrolled because the village elder said they wanted to prove that they support the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and are against Taliban, Yelverton said. "It allows non-criminal males to have an easier time finding work, because if they haven't been involved in criminal activity, it helps," said U.S. Army Capt. Michelle Weinbaum, Task Force 435, Task Force Biometrics operations officer, and a native of Cranston, R.I. "It's not only proof of involvement, but also proof of non-involvement."Can you imagine an existence where you couldn't identify yourself to anyone who didn't know you already?
This article really illuminates the challenges faced by both the Afghan government and the U.S. military. It appears possible that the efforts of the 101st Airborne Division could lead to the development of the kind of information necessary to increase the effectiveness of the Afghan government and allow the citizens of Afghanistan to create and deepen their civil institutions.
"Afghans enrolling Afghans really works. "Not only did they do an awesome job, Afghans lined up to get enrolled by other Afghans."Afghanistan hasn't had a census since 1979, and that one was never completed.
From the CIA World Factbook for Afghanistan (2010 est.):
Age structure:It seems that only about 25% of the Afghan population was even alive for the last (incomplete) census. It's hard to help a population when you don't know much about it. Perhaps these efforts can begin to develop the information necessary to help make Afghanistan a better place for its citizens. After all, it's about people.
0-14 years: 43.6%
15-64 years: 54%
65 years and over: 2.4%
Median age: 18 years
