Ascend Signs Partnership with University of Central Asia

ASCEND PARTNERS WITH THE UNIVERSITY OF CENTRAL ASIA 

TO IMPROVE ECONOMIC ACCESS FOR AFGHAN WOMEN

Supported by the Gates Foundation, UCA’s AWAKE project 

will support underserved female entrepreneurs

(KABUL, Afghanistan) JULY 24, 2025—Ascend, a nonprofit organization that works to empower girls and young women in Afghanistan and Pakistan, today announced a new partnership with the University of Central Asia to implement the school’s Accelerating Women’s Access to the Knowledge Economy (AWAKE) project. Per this agreement, which will run through 2027, Ascend will support UCA in its efforts to ensure highly skilled female entrepreneurs from Afghanistan are able to access and benefit from AWAKE’s programming.  

“We are so proud to again join forces with UCA to broaden our commitment to girls and young women in Afghanistan,” said Ascend Founder and Executive Director Marina LeGree. “When women lead, societies thrive, and it is crucial that we continue to provide access to the tools necessary for all of these women to rise.”

AWAKE is a three-year UCA initiative designed to empower Afghan women by enhancing their access to economic opportunities through digital skills training. The project addresses institutional and societal barriers, while generating evidence-based research to inform future interventions and policy development in fragile contexts. In November 2024, UCA was awarded a $1 million grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation to facilitate this work.

As an implementation partner for the AWAKE project, Ascend will utilize its extensive relationships within Afghanistan to identify, recruit, and register 3,000 program participants over the next three years. AWAKE’s programming will also operate within Ascend’s Kabul headquarters, giving students and instructors the opportunity to meet face-to-face in one of few established learning environments for women in the region.

This latest partnership with UCA is the second for Ascend, who previously collaborated with the university’s School of Professional and Continuing Education to launch the Ascend Entrepreneurship Program earlier this year. The initiative helps equip Afghan girls and young women with essential skills in entrepreneurship, business planning, financial literacy, and market strategy.

These partnerships build on Ascend’s decade of experience supporting girls and young women in Afghanistan. Originally founded in 2014 as a way to teach female empowerment through mountaineering, the organization’s work has shifted to multidimensional programs that provide the tools and skills necessary for women to rise above their societal and cultural constraints. The five areas of this work include: mountaineering and physical fitness, leadership and entrepreneurship, mental health, community engagement, and environmental stewardship and sustainability.

“In the years of our experience in Afghanistan, we have found Ascend as the most reliable partner,” said Rahman Nazar Farhad, who is head of UCA’s School of Professional and Continuing Education in Afghanistan. “The synergy we have created, the level of effort and energy the Ascend team showed, was unique, which has convinced us to look for a long-term partnership. Thanks to the strong leadership of Ascend, who paved the way for many young girls to start their businesses.”

###

ABOUT ASCEND

Ascend is galvanizing a generation of young women to become leaders in their communities, addressing the crisis of gender inequality. Through transformative experiences in mountaineering, health education, and community engagement, Ascend helps girls and young women build self-confidence and courage.

For nearly a decade, Ascend has redefined opportunities for women in Afghanistan and Pakistan, teaching them to navigate geographical and sociopolitical landscapes. The mountains symbolize the confidence and resilience necessary to transform societies that often devalue women.

Press Contact:

Marina LeGree

Founder and Executive Director, Ascend Leadership Through Athletics

marina@ascendathletics.org