NAJIBA’S BIOGRPHAY
Najiba Bahar was born in 1989, Zardnai village of Shahristan district in central Daikundi Province. She graduated from high school in 2007 as the first position holder. She earned a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Sciences through an Indian government funded scholarship. Najib was among the first batch of girls who took this path and was determined to open spaces for girls coming after them and to contribute to growth and development of Afghanistan.
Upon the completion of her degree program, Najiba was recruited by the Afghan Ministry of Mines and Petroleum. After two years of dedicated service at the Ministry, she won another competitive scholarship to pursue her Master’s degree in Computer Sciences at Kobe Institute of Computing, a world-class institute of technology in Japan. After completing her Master’s degree, in 2016, Najiba returned home with new plans and visions for her country. Najiba as one of the first women of the remote and poverty-ridden Daikundi province who completed that level of education, provided young women and those hailing from deprived communities with inspiration for higher education and personal development. But sadly, Najiba tragically lost her life to a suicide attack targeting government employees. Najiba had planned her engagement party in the same week. Najiba Foundation was established in response to this devastating violence to restore the communities’ morale and promote access to knowledge as the only way out.
In spite of the immutable fact of her untimely death, her dreams live on in the inspiration she continues to provide to others in her country. Now, her aspiration for a prosperous, socially inclusive and educated Afghanistan lives on in the form of the Najiba Foundation. The Foundation and its Library are located in Nili City, Daikundi province. The Foundation not only aims to keep her memory and dreams alive, but also strives to make those dreams come true for disadvantaged children in rural Afghanistan. Daikundi is one of the most neglected and the least developed provinces of Afghanistan. The local people face severe limitations in accessing to educational and other basic services. The Foundation works to expand opportunities and help its children to pursue their dreams, despite the crippling hardships, while memorializing the name and inspiration of the Najiba through the resources available at the Foundation.