One woman alone is helping to significantly increase the number of females at Afghanistan schools

A Danish woman has donated 5 million kroner to found schools in Afghanistan with the aim of helping women play a more central role in the country's democratic development, according to Ekstra Bladet newspaper.

Grethe Stief, 93, has put the money towards the Danish People's Aid program for school construction in the Asian country.

On Wednesday, 1 million kroner of that money was used to inaugurate a women's college at Albironi University in the Kapisa province. The new college, located about three hours north of Kabul, will house 50 female students planning to move into its dormitories.

‘For me this is a day of great joy. I hope that the college will be a wonderful place to be and that you will be diligent so you can get an education that will have meaning for your lives,’ Stief said in a statement prepared for the students’ inauguration.

Besides the women's college at Kapisa, the donation will fund girls' schools in the provinces of Samangan and Nangahar.

‘Grethe Stief’s generous contribution has meant that many more girls are able to continue their education after elementary school,’ said Klaus Nørlem, secretary general of Danish People's Aid. ‘The college in Kapisa alone will allow the university to double the number of its female students.’

Danish People’s Aid has helped to build and equip a number of new schools in Afghanistan since 2004 with financial support from state aid organisation Danida.