The Asia Foundation re-established its office in Kabul in February 2002 to launch new programme initiatives in key areas that will be central to the political, social, economic, and intellectual development of post-Taliban Afghanistan. The Asia Foundation maintained an office in Afghanistan for 26 years, from 1954 until the Soviet invasion in 1979, with an active presence and a programme supporting projects in education, agriculture, and trade. From 1988 until the mid 1990s, the Foundation continued to support a range of Afghan civil society, education, and women’s programmes through its office based in Peshawar, Pakistan, in anticipation of the eventual restoration of a sovereign government and the return of Afghan refugees. Responding to the tremendous challenges now facing the Afghan people and the Transitional Administration, The Asia Foundation is steadily expanding its presence and programmes in Afghanistan. Through a grant to AÏNA's Afghan Media and Culture Centre, the Foundation is currently supporting training for Afghan women in Kabul to enhance their technical capacity to produce film, video, and print stories on a range of issues using low-cost digital media tools. The culmination of this project was a documentary film and written narrative oral history focusing on the experience of Afghan women under the Taliban. Another key area of support is higher education. The Afghan system of higher education, particularly Kabul University, had been developed into a relatively strong set of institutions by the late 1970s, in part through Foundation assistance. However, over the last 10 years war and Taliban rule decimated the university staff. Re-establishing a functional system of higher education is essential for the long-term reconstruction of the country. In the near term, Kabul University will be particularly important in providing technical education and training needed for reconstruction. The Minister of Higher Education, Dr Sharif Fayez, was hosted by the Foundation in San Francisco in February 2002. Initial discussions focused on how the Foundation can assist in areas such as strategic planning, development of English language capacity, library development, and strengthening of regional universities and vocational schools as critical outposts for modernity and moderation. The Foundation has already shipped over 20,000 books to Kabul University through its Books for Asia programme. It has also sponsored library needs assessments for Kabul University and the National Library by an Afghan-American library science specialist. The Foundation also plans to support English language training for the University of Kabul faculty.