From the Ground Up

“In the past NGOs and other organisations, operating inside Afghanistan would reach out to companies like Red Source for the supply of goods and services, ” says Red Source founder, Mark Forrester. “But now, it’s the other way around. We are on the ground, and NGOs are funding us to supply and deliver humanitarian aid, in place of their own teams. I think it will work this way for a quite a while.”

Understandably, many organisations are nervous about returning to Afghanistan. The political situation is uncertain, but we must find a way around this to help Afghanistan population, who are now in the throes of a harsh winter. Hunger is rife and there are 23 million people on the brink of life-threatening shortages of basic food and other essentials.

In early autumn 2021, Red Source entered Afghanistan, going against the flow as many organisations, foreign aid agencies and NGOs left amidst sweeping uncertainty and turmoil.

Red Source drew on its existing and established network of regional specialists; men and women with intimate understanding of the country and with contacts in the private and governmental sectors. Where possible the company used local drivers and suppliers and swiftly created a highly effective procurement strategy.

Red Source is proud to work hand in hand with trailblazing local humanitarians and logistics experts inside Afghanistan, contributing to an economy, hugely impacted by the recent political changes.

“We operate transparently inside Afghanistan” says Mark.

“Funds go directly toward buying supplies and delivering them to where they are needed. Donors can clearly see exactly where every dollar goes. We send a Transparency Pack to any NGO who engages our services, regardless of the project size. Of course, much more is needed. We want to tell the world that we are capable of bridging that gap – we have demonstrated it through successful, swift and secure deliveries to many provinces in Afghanistan.   We are poised for our next humanitarian mission.”