
They're the street girls from Afghanistan who are taking up skateboarding to save their lives.

Hundreds of young girls in the war-torn country have signed up with charity Skateistan to get off the streets and back into school.

The chaos and destruction of 30 years of war in Afghanistan have created a country where children have few role models - and instead see dangerous fanatical figures and murderous war lords as the leaders of society.

But the charity are now working to create a new generation of leaders in the country, and recently opened their first outdoor skatepark in the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif.

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Here come the girls: at Skateistan's new facility in Mazar-e-Sharif, more than 40 per cent of their pupils are girls. Founder Ollie said: 'We want the girls to see one another as role models instead of the war lords who would drive around town with a car load of men who are waving guns around'

Inspiration: Skateistan 'use skateboarding as a tool for empowering youth, to create new opportunities and the potential for change'. They are giving new hope to a new generation of children in Afghanistan

Opportunity: The charity want to inspire the children on to greater things. 'Skateistan is about creating opportunities for the kids so that they can see that it is possible for them to have a chance to do what they want for their lives', said Ollie

Skateboard star: Halifa, 16, is one of Afghanistan's best skaters. She said: 'When I came to Skateistan, my life changed so much, because when I was working on the street, people would harass me'

Their role models might have been the war lords – but now they are the other kids who are making something of themselves Ollie Percovich, Skateistan founder

Hanifa, 16, was selling tea on the streets and in the parks of ravaged Kabul when she first visited one the charity's skateparks in 2010.

Now she is one Afghanistan’s most talented skaters and has become an inspiring teacher and role model for other young girls and has even joined Skateistan’s staff in the city as an instructor.

The teenager said: 'When I came to Skateistan, my life changed so much, because when I was working on the street, people would harass me.

'Now I feel good because I'm at Skateistan and I'm teaching the students. When the students call me teacher, it makes me very happy. I think by becoming a good skater, I'll create a better future for myself.'

Hanifa has enrolled in the charity's Back To School programme, and is hoping to return to public school with her friends.

Challenging: the charity's new outdoor facility in Mazar-e-Sharif features an outdoor classroom and skatepark obstacles for students to tackle

The charity was set up by Ollie Percovich, who believes that the 800 children he is working with across the country are determined to build a better future for themselves,

Ollie, from Melbourne in Australia, said: ‘We want the girls to see one another as role models instead of the war lords who would drive around town with a car load of men who are waving guns around.

‘It’s important that they have role models, and we want their role models to be other Afghan kids who are healthy and happy. The girls can see that they now have opportunities and options in their lives that may have not been there before.

‘Skateistan is about creating opportunities for the kids so that they can see that it is possible for them to have a chance to do what they want for their lives.’

Children in Afghanistan have lived amongst conflict for more than 30 years and the country was named by charity Unicef as the worst place in the world to be born.

But Skateistan staff are contributing to a new sense of hope in the country, and Ollie said: ‘We want to help create a new generation of leaders in Afghanistan that can tackle the problems that they face in society.

‘People might come to Afghanistan and say ‘Your political system is corrupt’ or ‘Your education system is not good enough’, but rather than tell them how to fix it, we want the kids to understand that what they consider to be important issues are the things that they can help change.

‘There are issues with drugs, such as opium and heroin abuse. Other things such as self-immolation, forced marriages and policemen taking bribes can be a problem.

‘We want to create a situation where they can stand up and tackle these problems in society as young Afghan people who want to make their country a better place.’

The charity started in 2007 with just three skateboards and a motorbike to transport them around ravaged Kabul but investment meant they were soon able to open their own skate park for budding boarders.

The new outdoor facility in Mazar-e-Sharif has been designed to feature pathways with skatepark obstacles, an outdoor classroom, trees for shade, grass areas for outdoor sports, gardens and a greenhouse.

Founder: Ollie first visited Afghanistan in 2006 and established Skateistan the following year. He said: 'We want to help create a new generation of leaders in Afghanistan that can tackle the problems that they face in society'

Ollie, 40, said: 'This is the first outdoor skate facility in the country, so it represents a big step forward for us. It was really exciting for us to be able to work on the design which has been made to look like a traditional Afghan garden.

'This is a unique space in Afghanistan, where opportunities to safely skateboard outside are rare – especially for female students. We have about 550 students in Mazar-e-Sharif and just under half of those – around 47 per cent – are girls.

‘We have the capability to host a lot more than that, so we are currently in the process of building up our number of teachers and hopefully getting more buses to help transport the students to the facility.’

The challenges faced by Ollie and his team remain difficult, and in 2012 they were heartbroken when one of their teachers and three students were brutally murdered during a suicide attack on international military base in Kabul.

Recent estimates claim that there have been more than 21,000 civilian casualties in Afghanistan due to war in the last 11 years alone.

Ollie and his dedicated team work daily to get kids off the streets and back into the education system through their learning programmes and projects.

‘We have three different groups that they join, depending on their age and circumstances: Skate And Create, Back To School and Youth Leadership’, he said.

Wheel-y great: The outdoor space in Mazar-e-Sharif has been designed to feature pathways with skatepark obstacles, an outdoor classroom, trees for shade, grass areas for outdoor sports, gardens and a greenhouse.

No obstacle: the young girls love tackling the ramps on the skatepark, and are also learning how to overcome Afghanistan's wider society problems in the classroom as well

New hope: skateboarding is giving a new lease of life to the street kids in the country, which has a population of approximately 31 million people

‘Skate And Create is a session where they are encouraged to use their creative ability alongside practising their skateboarding.

‘Back To School is a very important one as that is where we take the street kids who have dropped out of the education system and put them on an accelerated course to get back into school.

‘And Youth Leadership is for the slightly older students where we give them opportunities to become more responsible leaders amongst their peer groups, as well as get involved in creative elements such as photography and blogging and so on.

‘The courses are designed very much as a springboard so that the students can use take the opportunity to improve themselves and enjoy skateboarding sessions as well.’

For more information on Skateistan, visit: http://www.skateistan.org/

Bright future: Skateistan offers hope to the young girls in the war-torn country, where there are estimated to have been more than 21,000 civilian casualties in Afghanistan due to war in the last 11 years alone

Colourful: Skateistan are open six days per week and offers single gender classes to keep boys and girls separate while they skate

All smiles: Women can't ride bicycles in Afghanistan, but skateboarding is novel enough to be open to women and has attracted them in droves to the school and skateparks where classes are free