Dr. Steven Kwon is a Pasadena-based retiree committed to ending malnutrition in Afghanistan. He is preparing to take his 54th trip to the war-torn country in need of a helping hand. Despite heightened security risks, he is traveling to Afghanistan to assist with Nutrition & Education International’s (NEI) humanitarian relief programs, women’s empowerment initiatives and farming development projects.
Dr. Kwon is the president and CEO of NEI, a Pasadena-based non-profit organization that has been working in Afghanistan to eradicate protein malnutrition for 12 years. NEI’s mission is to eradicate malnutrition through soybean cultivation and nutrition programs with a focus on Afghans most affected by food insecurity, especially women and children.
The withdrawal of the U.S. and its allies from Afghanistan is reducing foreign aid in a country heavily reliant on outside assistance. As foreign aid diminishes, Dr. Kwon and his Afghan staff at NEI have continued to implement projects that promote self-reliance among poor rural farmers. Male and female farmers are trained on how to grow soy and wheat, which improves access to high protein food for tens of thousands of households. NEI’s women’s empowerment program provides training and employment in a country that does not offer women many opportunities. Dr. Kwon’s devotion to this cause has resulted in over 1.7 million women and children benefiting from humanitarian aid relief and over 70,000 farmers receiving soy farming assistance.
For more information on NEI, please visit www.neifoundation.org.