Building bright digital futures for young women in Afghanistan through coding, with Fereshteh Forough and Code to Inspire

Fereshteh Forough was born a refugee in Iran after her family fled Afghanistan because of the Soviet invasion. Despite the family’s circumstances, Fereshteh’s parents instilled in her and her siblings the value of education from an early age. Her mother sewed clothing to sell in order to earn money to buy school supplies for the children so they can go to school. When Fereshteh was a teen, the Taliban regime collapsed and Fereshteh and her family moved back to Herat, Afghanistan. After returning to Herat, she earned her Bachelor’s in Computer Science. She later earned her Master’s from Technical University of Berlin in Germany.

She returned to Herat University to join the Computer Science faculty, where she taught for almost three years. In 2015, she established Code to Inspire, the first computer coding school for girls in Afghanistan.Leading all aspects of operations and fundraising remotely CTI educated more than 350 students so far in coding and graphic design classes. Fereshteh remains focused on a vision of a future for her homeland where young women play a prominent role in the economy and future success. Fereshteh is a pioneer in adopting blockchain and cryptocurrency technology in Afghanistan.

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