PAKTIKA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – When theft and corruption involving more than $1.1 million surfaced last year in Paktika province, it brought educators’ pay to a grinding halt and nearly caused a massive walkout by the teachers of the Waza Kwah School District.

In an effort to correct the problem, Ehsanullah, the new Director of Education for Paktika province, and provincial governor Moheebullah Samim made education a top priority, and they worked together to formulate a solution to get the teachers paid.

Ehsannulah took the first step by creating an educator’s registration system for all area teachers and principals.

“I think this system will prevent teachers from having future problems receiving their pay,” said Ehsanullah. “Corrupt officials no longer have a role in the process and will not have an opportunity to steal the pay.”

Once the new system was in the place, officials were able to properly process the pay checks.

The next step was travelling to Waza Kwah District and paying the teachers, who have been working without pay for the last seven months.

Of the 111 registered teachers, 97 arrived at the district center to receive their pay. The government provided five-months of back-pay to the waiting teachers. For those who could not make it, arrangements were made to pay them at a later date.

The teachers were overjoyed to receive their pay and extremely grateful to the governor for following through on his promise. Many of them expressed their intent to pay off debts and enjoy a celebration at the end of the Ramadan holiday, said U.S. Army Capt. Scott Harris, native of Fayetteville, N.C., and the Government and Development Officer for 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment.

“This whole process took a lot of work at the national government level,” said Ehsanullah. “But, in the end it was well worth it.”

Although paying the teachers was a number one priority, it was not all Ehsanullah has planned for the education system in his district. He is currently working to make several changes to the payment system, and he is trying to ease restrictions on education qualifications to allow for hiring more educators.

“The event was a great success for the Afghan government,” said Harris. “Gov. Samim and Ehsanullah made multiple trips to Kabul fighting for educator support and it paid off. They lived up to their promise.”

“The Afghan government has made great progress in their ability to reach out to the people and connect with them,” said U.S. Army Capt. Justin Quisenberry, native of Ortonville, Mich., and commander of Company C, 3rd Battalion, 187th Infantry Regiment. “Bringing closure to this issue was a huge step in the right direction for Paktika’s governor and the department of education. It has helped legitimize the government’s authority in Waza Kwah.”

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