Thank you for that question.
Let me premise the answer by saying that yes, Canadian military personnel and Canadian civilians are present in Afghanistan, but there are over 3,000 Canadian civilians, as well as military personnel, all around the world. They are in Haiti, in Afghanistan--obviously--and in Darfur in the Sudan. They are part of UN-led initiatives, and we are extremely pleased with and proud of what our people are doing.
We have seen some improvements in the situation of women in Afghanistan over the course of the last several months. As you know, we're working to strengthen security in all target districts by ensuring full community participation in school security through consultations with community leaders and elders as part of the local council, the shura, which is a system established by the department of education.
We support, of course, a full range of projects to increase women's legal rights and access to education, maternal health, the labour market, and political office. Today Afghan women make up 27% of elected parliamentarians. Approximately six million children are enrolled in schools nationally, and as I mentioned at the very outset, roughly 2.2 million of these are women--young girls. More than 290,000 women have access to small loans and savings services across the country. Canada continues to work with the Government of Afghanistan and with groups to improve the rights and lives of women and girls in Afghanistan.