Kandahar University
Encyclopedia
Kandahar University is a government funded higher learning institution in Kandahar
, Afghanistan
. It is one of two universities in southern Afghanistan. Kandahar University (KU) was established in 1990, at a time when the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
(PDPA) was in power under President Mohammad Najibullah
. Dr. Tooryalai Wesa
, who returned to the country after 13 years and is the current governor of Kandahar province
, was the first Chancellor
of Kandahar University. It is believed that he will help in the development and progress of the university.
Kandahar University provides areas of study in Agriculture
, Medicine
, Engineering
and Education
. The university has future plans to launch faculties in the fields of Economy
, Computer Science
and Islamic Studies
. The institution currently has an enrollment of 1,124+ students with a dominant number of male students. Females represent five per cent of the student body. KU enrolls around 280 students each year in different majors through an entrance exam directly under control of the Ministry of Higher Education of Afghanistan.
Kandahar University officially started with the faculty of Agriculture
in 1991. The Faculty of Medicine
was also launched in 1994. Engineering
was established in 2000 and faculty of Education
in 2009 Economics faculty. The University at the beginning was located at the center of Kandahar city in a campus shared with a technical school
. Due to lack of classes and hostel facilities, a specific area was selected for the University in the north-west of Kandahar city. The work of constructing the new campus started during the governance of Gul Agha Sherzai
who strongly supported and contributed Kandahar University in different aspects.
The current Campus of the University covers an area of more than 600,000 m2. The University has 11 buildings, of which one is the Administration and Chancellor’s office, four buildings for a hostel
, one for each faculty and one for the Central Library
. The University also has a separate girls' hostel. There are some other structures located in the campus. The most important among them is the tomb
of Allama Abdul Shakoor Rishad baba
who was a well known writer, artist and poet of Afghanistan. There is also a huge mosque
located beside the University for attending the Eidgah
pray each year.
The Canadian government in 2008 built a three-km perimeter of stone, brick and iron around the school campus. It has been dubbed the Great Wall of Kandahar. The new wall addresses a security and other concerns hampering the school’s development.
Agriculture faculty was the first in Kandahar University. The faculty offers a 4 year agriculture program. Professor
Shah Mahmood Barai is the Dean
of this faculty from the beginning until now. His long term struggles and outstanding administration have achieved many goals in the progression and development of this faculty. The faculty enrolls around 80 students each year. The first two years are basic and generals about Agriculture.
The faculty has 6 departments and selection is made at third year of the course:
located beside the campus was established in 2004 by joint cooperation of ARLDF and Agriculture faculty. The farm is located in an area of 22,000 m2. The farm is a good site for the practical activities of agriculture students. The farm coveres activities in the fields of:
Agronomy and Soil Science, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Plant Protection. The farm not only trains students of relevant fields but also provides trainings to farmers so that they learn new agricultural methods and then follow the best practices.
Medical faculty was established in 1994, second at the university after the Faculty of Agriculture. The university has graduated 250 students in bachelor degrees. The faculty is still in a progressive phase, but it remained active throughout the years of civil war in Afghanistan when the opportunities for higher education was very limited. The faculty has a medical library and laboratory facilities. Medical students formerly intern at Mirwais Hospital
, but the faculty now has its own teaching hospital. The students have to attend the hospital twice a week starting from the third year. The final year is an internship, where the students will receive hands-on patient experience. The Faculty of Medicine has ties with Kabul Medical Institute
and Zahidan Medical College located in Zahidan of Sistan.
Although each faculty has its own library, there is also a central library
located in a 3 story building inside the university. A new building is scheduled to be built as the main library under a World Bank
donation, because the current one is not designed to hold a library.
The central library is named after the well-known and famous writer of Afghanistan, Allamah
Habibi. The current library contains 42,000 books, most of which are in English language
but some in Pashto
and Dari (Persian)
. The library also has a study room. A computerized database is going to be made for the library to ease the access of students to the books and to solve monitoring problems. Due to a lack of rooms and shelves in the current building, most of the books are still stored in boxes. The library is working on a computerized database for the time.
provides computer skills and internet
facilities for the students of Kandahar University. This department has a computer lab which contains 40 computers plus Internet facility.
Mostly the students coming to University are familiar with computers but the department provides extra skills in various software. First year students from each faculty get 2 credits a week to learn computers.
has more sophisticated laboratory among other faculties. It has 3 laboratories in different fields. There is a plan of making a Central laboratory under the donation of the World Bank
. The materials of this laboratory are already received and stored in the University and are only awaiting the building to be built.
Medical laboratories are not allowed to open up dead bodies. But the students have practical work twice a week in Kandahar Medical faculty hospital. This hospital was recently inaugurated and came under control of the University. It was a Military hospital before. Struggles are going on to make the hospital more sophisticated and accessible for civilians. The students at last year of Medical course intern at Mirwais Hospital
which is a Zonal hospital located in Kandahar city. But the students will soon start their internship program in their own University Hospital.
The students also have some educational trips to other provinces. Recently Horticulture students of Agriculture faculty had an educational trip to Jalalabad
. They visited Nangarhar University
, to see their laboratory and different agricultural fields and farms.
Kandahar University has a department of Publication. The University is publishing various magazines which cover different educational, social, cultural, religious, and other issues. The University currently publishes the following magazines:
ordered a Computer
, TV, Cupboard
and a Rug
for each room of the hostel but this did not happen due to his transfer from Kandahar to Nangarhar province
. The hostel provides free food for the students under the budget of the Ministry of Higher Education. The problem the hostel has is lack of regular electricity, although there is a power generator but not enough or not activated due to lack of fuel.
Kandahar
Kandahar is the second largest city in Afghanistan, with a population of about 512,200 as of 2011. It is the capital of Kandahar Province, located in the south of the country at about 1,005 m above sea level...
, 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...
. It is one of two universities in southern Afghanistan. Kandahar University (KU) was established in 1990, at a time when the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan
The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan was a communist party established on the 1 January 1965. While a minority, the party helped former president of Afghanistan, Mohammed Daoud Khan, to overthrow his cousin, Mohammed Zahir Shah, and established Daoud's Republic of Afghanistan...
(PDPA) was in power under President Mohammad Najibullah
Mohammad Najibullah
Mohammad Najibullah Ahmadzai , originally merely Najibullah, was the fourth and last President of the Soviet-backed Democratic Republic of Afghanistan. He is also considered the second President of the Republic of Afghanistan.-Early years:Najibullah was born in August 1947 to the Ahmadzai...
. Dr. Tooryalai Wesa
Tooryalai Wesa
Tooryalai Wesa is the current Governor of Kandahar Province, after replacing General Rahmatullah Raufi in December 2008. Tooryalai Wesa was born in village Kohak in District Arghandab and grew up in Kandahar...
, who returned to the country after 13 years and is the current governor of Kandahar province
Kandahar Province
Kandahar or Qandahar is one of the largest of the thirty-four provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in southern Afghanistan, between Helmand, Oruzgan and Zabul provinces. Its capital is the city of Kandahar, which is located on the Arghandab River. The province has a population of nearly...
, was the first Chancellor
Chancellor
Chancellor is the title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the Cancellarii of Roman courts of justice—ushers who sat at the cancelli or lattice work screens of a basilica or law court, which separated the judge and counsel from the...
of Kandahar University. It is believed that he will help in the development and progress of the university.
Kandahar University provides areas of study in Agriculture
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
, Medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
, Engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
and Education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
. The university has future plans to launch faculties in the fields of Economy
Economy
An economy consists of the economic system of a country or other area; the labor, capital and land resources; and the manufacturing, trade, distribution, and consumption of goods and services of that area...
, Computer Science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
and Islamic Studies
Islamic studies
In a Muslim context, Islamic studies can be an umbrella term for all virtually all of academia, both originally researched and as defined by the Islamization of knowledge...
. The institution currently has an enrollment of 1,124+ students with a dominant number of male students. Females represent five per cent of the student body. KU enrolls around 280 students each year in different majors through an entrance exam directly under control of the Ministry of Higher Education of Afghanistan.
Overview
Agriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
in 1991. The Faculty of Medicine
Medicine
Medicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
was also launched in 1994. Engineering
Engineering
Engineering is the discipline, art, skill and profession of acquiring and applying scientific, mathematical, economic, social, and practical knowledge, in order to design and build structures, machines, devices, systems, materials and processes that safely realize improvements to the lives of...
was established in 2000 and faculty of Education
Education
Education in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
in 2009 Economics faculty. The University at the beginning was located at the center of Kandahar city in a campus shared with a technical school
Technical school
Technical school is a general term used for two-year college which provide mostly employment-preparation skills for trained labor, such as welding, culinary arts and office management.-Associations supporting technical schools:...
. Due to lack of classes and hostel facilities, a specific area was selected for the University in the north-west of Kandahar city. The work of constructing the new campus started during the governance of Gul Agha Sherzai
Gul Agha Sherzai
Gul Agha Sherzai is the current Governor of Nangarhar province in Afghanistan.He previously served as Governor of Kandahar province, in the early 1990s and from 2001 until 2003.-Biography:...
who strongly supported and contributed Kandahar University in different aspects.
The current Campus of the University covers an area of more than 600,000 m2. The University has 11 buildings, of which one is the Administration and Chancellor’s office, four buildings for a hostel
Hostel
Hostels provide budget oriented, sociable accommodation where guests can rent a bed, usually a bunk bed, in a dormitory and share a bathroom, lounge and sometimes a kitchen. Rooms can be mixed or single-sex, although private rooms may also be available...
, one for each faculty and one for the Central Library
Central Library
-United Kingdom:* Birmingham Central Library* Central Library * Bristol Central Library* Cardiff Central Library* Croydon Central Library* Leeds Central Library* Liverpool Central Library* Manchester Central Library* Newcastle City Library...
. The University also has a separate girls' hostel. There are some other structures located in the campus. The most important among them is the tomb
Tomb
A tomb is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes...
of Allama Abdul Shakoor Rishad baba
Baba (honorific)
Baba is a Persian honorific term used in several Middle Eastern and South Asian cultures. It is used as a mark of respect to refer to Sufi saints....
who was a well known writer, artist and poet of Afghanistan. There is also a huge mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
located beside the University for attending the Eidgah
Eidgah
Eidgah or Idgah is an open-air mosque usually outside the city to perform Eid ul-Fitr and Eid al-Adha salah.It was a practice of Prophet Muhammad to perform Eid Salaah in Eidgah at the outskirts of the city...
pray each year.
The Canadian government in 2008 built a three-km perimeter of stone, brick and iron around the school campus. It has been dubbed the Great Wall of Kandahar. The new wall addresses a security and other concerns hampering the school’s development.
Agriculture faculty
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
Shah Mahmood Barai is the Dean
Dean (education)
In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of this faculty from the beginning until now. His long term struggles and outstanding administration have achieved many goals in the progression and development of this faculty. The faculty enrolls around 80 students each year. The first two years are basic and generals about Agriculture.
The faculty has 6 departments and selection is made at third year of the course:
- Department of AgronomyAgronomyAgronomy is the science and technology of producing and using plants for food, fuel, feed, fiber, and reclamation. Agronomy encompasses work in the areas of plant genetics, plant physiology, meteorology, and soil science. Agronomy is the application of a combination of sciences like biology,...
- Department of Soil ScienceSoil scienceSoil science is the study of soil as a natural resource on the surface of the earth including soil formation, classification and mapping; physical, chemical, biological, and fertility properties of soils; and these properties in relation to the use and management of soils.Sometimes terms which...
and IrrigationIrrigationIrrigation may be defined as the science of artificial application of water to the land or soil. It is used to assist in the growing of agricultural crops, maintenance of landscapes, and revegetation of disturbed soils in dry areas and during periods of inadequate rainfall... - Department of HorticultureHorticultureHorticulture is the industry and science of plant cultivation including the process of preparing soil for the planting of seeds, tubers, or cuttings. Horticulturists work and conduct research in the disciplines of plant propagation and cultivation, crop production, plant breeding and genetic...
, Jungles and Natural ResourcesNatural ResourcesNatural Resources is a soul album released by Motown girl group Martha Reeves and the Vandellas in 1970 on the Gordy label. The album is significant for the Vietnam War ballad "I Should Be Proud" and the slow jam, "Love Guess Who"... - Department of Plant Protection
- Department of Animal HusbandryAnimal husbandryAnimal husbandry is the agricultural practice of breeding and raising livestock.- History :Animal husbandry has been practiced for thousands of years, since the first domestication of animals....
- Department of Agriculture economy and extension
Agriculture and animal husbandry farm
Agricultural and Animal Husbandry FarmFarm
A farm is an area of land, or, for aquaculture, lake, river or sea, including various structures, devoted primarily to the practice of producing and managing food , fibres and, increasingly, fuel. It is the basic production facility in food production. Farms may be owned and operated by a single...
located beside the campus was established in 2004 by joint cooperation of ARLDF and Agriculture faculty. The farm is located in an area of 22,000 m2. The farm is a good site for the practical activities of agriculture students. The farm coveres activities in the fields of:
Agronomy and Soil Science, Horticulture, Animal Husbandry and Plant Protection. The farm not only trains students of relevant fields but also provides trainings to farmers so that they learn new agricultural methods and then follow the best practices.
Medical school
Mirwais Hospital
The Mirwais Hospital is a hospital in Kandahar, Afghanistan. It is named after Mirwais Hotak, who is known in the area as Mirwais Neeka . It along with a hospital in Quetta are the only advance medical facilities in the area....
, but the faculty now has its own teaching hospital. The students have to attend the hospital twice a week starting from the third year. The final year is an internship, where the students will receive hands-on patient experience. The Faculty of Medicine has ties with Kabul Medical Institute
Kabul Medical University
Kabul Medical University is located in Kabul, Afghanistan on the campus of Kabul University. The medical institution was initially maintained by collaboration with the Turkish and French sponsors. KMF developed into a single autonomous University in 2005...
and Zahidan Medical College located in Zahidan of Sistan.
Civil engineering
The faculty of Civil Engineering is established in 2000 with the strong efforts of Kandahar engineers. Till now, 290 students are graduated in the field of Civil Engineering. The faculty of Civil Engineering is equipped with the modern educational equipments and standard academic methods.Central library
Library
In a traditional sense, a library is a large collection of books, and can refer to the place in which the collection is housed. Today, the term can refer to any collection, including digital sources, resources, and services...
located in a 3 story building inside the university. A new building is scheduled to be built as the main library under a World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
donation, because the current one is not designed to hold a library.
The central library is named after the well-known and famous writer of Afghanistan, Allamah
Allamah
An Allamah , also spelled Allameh and Allama, is an honorary title carried by only the very highest scholars of Islamic thought, jurisprudence, and philosophy....
Habibi. The current library contains 42,000 books, most of which are in English language
English language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
but some in Pashto
Pashto language
Pashto , known as Afghani in Persian and Pathani in Punjabi , is the native language of the indigenous Pashtun people or Afghan people who are found primarily between an area south of the Amu Darya in Afghanistan and...
and Dari (Persian)
Dari (Persian)
Dari or Fārsī-ye Darī in historical terms refers to the Persian court language of the Sassanids. In contemporary usage, the term refers to the dialects of modern Persian language spoken in Afghanistan, and hence known as Afghan Persian in some Western sources. It is the term officially recognized...
. The library also has a study room. A computerized database is going to be made for the library to ease the access of students to the books and to solve monitoring problems. Due to a lack of rooms and shelves in the current building, most of the books are still stored in boxes. The library is working on a computerized database for the time.
IT department
The department of ITInformation technology
Information technology is the acquisition, processing, storage and dissemination of vocal, pictorial, textual and numerical information by a microelectronics-based combination of computing and telecommunications...
provides computer skills and internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
facilities for the students of Kandahar University. This department has a computer lab which contains 40 computers plus Internet facility.
Mostly the students coming to University are familiar with computers but the department provides extra skills in various software. First year students from each faculty get 2 credits a week to learn computers.
Laboratory and practice
Each faculty has its own laboratory. AgricultureAgriculture
Agriculture is the cultivation of animals, plants, fungi and other life forms for food, fiber, and other products used to sustain life. Agriculture was the key implement in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that nurtured the...
has more sophisticated laboratory among other faculties. It has 3 laboratories in different fields. There is a plan of making a Central laboratory under the donation of the World Bank
World Bank
The World Bank is an international financial institution that provides loans to developing countries for capital programmes.The World Bank's official goal is the reduction of poverty...
. The materials of this laboratory are already received and stored in the University and are only awaiting the building to be built.
Medical laboratories are not allowed to open up dead bodies. But the students have practical work twice a week in Kandahar Medical faculty hospital. This hospital was recently inaugurated and came under control of the University. It was a Military hospital before. Struggles are going on to make the hospital more sophisticated and accessible for civilians. The students at last year of Medical course intern at Mirwais Hospital
Mirwais Hospital
The Mirwais Hospital is a hospital in Kandahar, Afghanistan. It is named after Mirwais Hotak, who is known in the area as Mirwais Neeka . It along with a hospital in Quetta are the only advance medical facilities in the area....
which is a Zonal hospital located in Kandahar city. But the students will soon start their internship program in their own University Hospital.
The students also have some educational trips to other provinces. Recently Horticulture students of Agriculture faculty had an educational trip to Jalalabad
Jalalabad
Jalalabad , formerly called Adinapour, as documented by the 7th century Hsüan-tsang, is a city in eastern Afghanistan. Located at the junction of the Kabul River and Kunar River near the Laghman valley, Jalalabad is the capital of Nangarhar province. It is linked by approximately of highway with...
. They visited Nangarhar University
Nangarhar University
Nangarhar University is a government-funded higher learning institution in Jalalabad, Afghanistan. It is the second largest university in Afghanistan. It has approximately 250 faculty and 3,500 students....
, to see their laboratory and different agricultural fields and farms.
Publications
- Kandahar University: The first volume was printed in 2002. Mostly covers Issues of Kandahar University and also pays attention to educational sector.
- Shena Pana (Green leaf): first printed in 2008. This is a magazine specially belongs to the faculty of Agriculture and focuses on the development of this faculty as well as agricultural activities. Publishes once in three months.
- Anar: the author of this magazine is ProfessorProfessorA professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
Shah Mahmood Barai, the DeanDean (education)In academic administration, a dean is a person with significant authority over a specific academic unit, or over a specific area of concern, or both...
of Agriculture faculty. Covers agricultural articles which are mostly important for farmers. - Rogh Ramat (Healthy): First volume printed in 2007 is a specific magazine of faculty of MedicineMedicineMedicine is the science and art of healing. It encompasses a variety of health care practices evolved to maintain and restore health by the prevention and treatment of illness....
. The articles are mostly about the health issues, diseases, hygiene, and activities of medicine faculty. This magazine is under authorization of Kandahar Medical Doctors Association. Lecturers and students are actively taking part in providing different articles. - Naranj: first volume printed in 2008 is an educational magazine printed under the authorization of Kandahar University publication department.
Hostel
Most of the students at Kandahar University are living in a hostel. The campus has both boys' and girls' hostels. However, due to security issues, girls are not willing to live on campus and instead live in the city with their relatives. 4 buildings are specified for boys' hostels. Each building consist about 44 rooms. The number of students varies from 4 to 6 per room. This is because the current buildings are not enough for total students living in the hostel. At the completion of the new campus, Gul Agha SherzaiGul Agha Sherzai
Gul Agha Sherzai is the current Governor of Nangarhar province in Afghanistan.He previously served as Governor of Kandahar province, in the early 1990s and from 2001 until 2003.-Biography:...
ordered a Computer
Computer
A computer is a programmable machine designed to sequentially and automatically carry out a sequence of arithmetic or logical operations. The particular sequence of operations can be changed readily, allowing the computer to solve more than one kind of problem...
, TV, Cupboard
Cupboard
A cupboard or press is a type of cabinet, often made of wood, used indoors to store household objects such as food, crockery, textiles and liquor, and protect them from dust,vermin and dirt....
and a Rug
Carpet
A carpet is a textile floor covering consisting of an upper layer of "pile" attached to a backing. The pile is generally either made from wool or a manmade fibre such as polypropylene,nylon or polyester and usually consists of twisted tufts which are often heat-treated to maintain their...
for each room of the hostel but this did not happen due to his transfer from Kandahar to Nangarhar province
Nangarhar Province
Nangarhar is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan in the east of the country. Its capital is the city of Jalalabad. The population of the province is 1,334,000, which consists mainly of ethnic Pashtuns with a sizable community of Arabs and Pashais....
. The hostel provides free food for the students under the budget of the Ministry of Higher Education. The problem the hostel has is lack of regular electricity, although there is a power generator but not enough or not activated due to lack of fuel.