According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) statistics of 31st December 2007, there were about 3,050,000 Afghan refugees worldwide. Many of these are living in Iran, some of whom had been born and brought up there. Even though many of these Afghan refugees were born in Iran and had even been educated at universities there, as refugees their employment opportunities are still limited, being able to find only low-waged and manual work. Others lack the necessary qualifications and do not have the opportunity to gain skills and as a result are unable to improve their situations, even if they return to their country.





In September 2003, NICCO opened a vocational school in Mashhad, in eastern Iran. The school offers courses in IT, commercial printing, image processing and English, aiming at providing the refugees with the skills needed to participate in the future job market after they return to Afghanistan. Special knowledge and additional skills are essential in order to directly access employment opportunities and to participate fully in the job market. The courses at the college are designed with this purpose in mind.