As the United States approaches its 2014 deadline for military withdrawal from Afghanistan, one often overshadowed aspect of the conflict is the hard-won progress made by previously marginalized segments of the Afghan population, particularly women, girls, and young people.
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Historically speaking, Afghanistan’s large proportion of young people – called a “youth bulge” by demographers – presents many challenges to achieving democracy, said the Stimson Center‘s Demographer in Residence and ECSP consultant Richard Cincotta.
Without access to education and livelihood opportunities – goals that become increasingly more difficult with each successive generation of growth -“youthful populations are statistically risky populations, and have a high risk of civil conflict and a low probability of attaining high levels of democracy,” he said.
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