The Afghan New Beginnings Programme aims to disarm, demobilise and reintegrate thousands of combatants from the Afghan Militia Forces and provide them opportunities to join the Afghan National Army, Afghan National Police or an alternative line of work.

It also aims to demobilise and reintegrate thousands of child combatant

Military use of children

The military use of children takes three distinct forms: children can take direct part in hostilities , or they can be used in support roles such as porters, spies, messengers, look outs, and sexual slaves; or they can be used for political advantage either as human shields or in...

s in Afghanistan

Afghanistan

Afghanistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, is a landlocked country located in the centre of Asia, forming South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East. With a population of about 29 million, it has an area of , making it the 42nd most populous and 41st largest nation in the world...

. Many boys in Afghanistan were born into war. They have never known peace, but instead have encountered banditry

Banditry

Banditry refers to the life and practice of bandits which the Oxford English Dictionary defines as "one who is proscribed or outlawed; hence, a lawless desperate marauder, a brigand: usually applied to members of the organized gangs which infest the mountainous districts of Italy, Sicily, Spain,...

 and murder

Murder

Murder is the unlawful killing, with malice aforethought, of another human being, and generally this state of mind distinguishes murder from other forms of unlawful homicide...

. A number of boy soldiers were conscripted for the sexual gratification of Mujaheddin and Taliban commanders. The programme is funded by UNICEF.