Afghanistan National Institute of Music on solid ground in Portugal with help from a Swedish initiative
In 2018, Dr. Ahmad Naser Sarmast was awarded the Polar Music Prize for his work with the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM). He is also the founder of Zohra, Afghanistan’s first all-female orchestra comprised of women between the ages of 13 and 22. The return of the Taliban to power, placed the lives of students, faculty, and staff of ANIM at extreme and direct risk.The school and its community have always been a target of the Taliban which has only been magnified after the takeover of the Taliban forcing members of the Zohra Orchestra and ANIM community to flee from Afghanistan.