Afghanistan and Central Asian Association

Afghanistan and Central Asian Association (ACAA) is a charitable incorporated organisation that supports London's refugee community and the Afghan diaspora in the United Kingdom. The organisation also campaigns for human rights, democracy and the fair treatment of refugees in Afghanistan and around the world. The charity has a dual mission of supporting the successful integration of refugees into Britain through grassroots service provision and of advocating for the promotion of human rights and fair treatment of refugees globally through hosting events and international conferences. The ACAA is the only London-based charity supporting Afghan and Central Asian migrants that has a community centre, running a variety of services, such as ESOL classes and a legal aid clinic, to help refugees integrate as well as hosting regular cultural events and international conferences to raise awareness of the plight of refugees. In 2018 the ACAA was awarded the Queens Award for Voluntary Service. and in 2019 won the Refugee Support Service of the Year Award.

Launch
The organisation was founded in 2001 by Nooralhaq Nasimi who arrived in the UK in 1999 in a refrigerated container with his wife and three young children, as a political refugee fleeing persecution at the hands of the Taliban. With the aid of local MPs and community organisations, Nasimi established the ACAA in 2001 in order to help other refugees, based on lessons he learnt from his own experiences attempting to integrate into the UK. The organisation was initially a community group that brought together Afghan refugees, but evolved to become a service provider that attempts to bridge gaps that exist for refugees who are attempting to build new lives in a new country.

Support for Refugees
The charity offers a wide range of services for refugees in the UK to promote cultural integration and increase agency for individuals in the community. Services range from ESOL classes, legal clinics, a community fridge, mental health and more general mentoring services, financial advice, digital literacy support and many others. The organisation also provides services specific to particular demographics in the refugee community. For example, female empowerment workshops for Afghan women and a Girls Digital Education project for the digital literacy of Afghan girls is provided by the association. It also offers a Balkh and Ghorband Girls Football club, with 80 attendees in 2022, and a supplementary Saturday School for children and young people, with 150 students enrolled in 2022.

Today the charity runs ESOL classes, offers free legal clinics, runs a supplementary Saturday school for refugee children, offers a women's corner for female refugees and organises regular cultural and social events. In 2017 the charity expanded significantly when it opened a second office in Hounslow, London. The charity now runs services across three London boroughs. In 2021, after the fall of Kabul, the charity provided emergency supplies and housing clinics for incoming refugees. The charity now runs services across three London boroughs. In June 2018 it worked with Lewisham Borough Council to assist recent refugee arrivals to access public services.

Although the charity's work is aimed towards the Afghan and Central Asian diaspora, it has a non-exclusion policy and in early 2023, it launched its ‘Ukrainian Resettlement Project,’ expanding its impact by providing services for Ukrainian refugees. The association continues to support the Ukrainian community in the UK through long-term resettlement services.

Operation Pitting
After the evacuation of eligible Afghanistan nationals from Afghanistan to the UK following the 2021 Taliban offensive, the ACAA advised the Minister of Housing on the accommodation of the large influx of refugees in London. With its main office located close to Heathrow Airport, it also became a central point of contact for the incoming refugees. For the first several days after the 2021 Taliban offensive, over 600 people were reported to have been queuing outside the ACAA’s office, in order to receive legal aid and basic necessities.

Political Awareness
The association also does advocacy work for the rights of refugees in the UK. Through social media, information on their website and international peace conferences, the association promotes its values of cultural integration and the rights of refugees in the UK.

The association has also advised government initiatives, such as the home office’s ‘prevent’ initiative, aiming to reduce radicalisation and support for terrorist organisations.

Cultural Events
As well as academic conferences, the association often hosts events to preserve the cultural identities of refugees and migrants from Afghanistan and Central Asia. From women’s tea corners to music and dance events, the association aims to provide opportunities for community to be fostered among the Afghan and Central Asian migrant community.

Citizens Advice Centres in Kabul and Pul-e-Khumri
With funding from the UK Department for International Development, the ACAA launched citizens advice centres in Kabul and Pul-e-Khumri in 2013 to provide free, impartial, and confidential legal advice to the local community. The centre in Kabul focuses on employment counselling and women's legal advice, whilst the centre in Pul-e-Khumri focuses on providing lessons in computer technology, English and with numerous other life skills. The ACAA also worked with the Canadian embassy on a gender equality project with three bases, in Kabul, Balkh and Paktia. The organisation aims to reopen these two centres, though their work is currently suspended.