Frequently asked questions
پرسشهای متداول
When are you open, does it cost anything, do I have to be a member, do I have to be Afghan? The answers are here in full sentences — no small print and no promises we cannot keep.
In short
Just come by
Cost
None
Appointment
Not needed
We are open on Mondays from 10:00 to 14:00, Wednesdays from 12:00 to 16:00 and Fridays from 10:00 to 14:00. Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday are closed. The association runs entirely on volunteers — the hours are short, but they really do apply.
Opening hours & directionsNo. During opening hours you can come in without registering and without an appointment — that is what sets the Afghan Communication and Cultural Centre apart from most advice centres. Only if someone is to accompany you to an appointment at a public authority or interpret at a doctor's appointment do you agree this in advance.
The address is Reuterstraße 15, 12053 Berlin-Neukölln. That is the Reuterkiez in Berlin-Neukölln, right on the border with Kreuzberg. People come from all over Berlin — from Wedding, Lichtenberg and Marzahn just as much as neighbours from the same street.
See how to get hereTake the U7 or U8 to Hermannplatz; from there it is about a ten-minute walk through the Reuterkiez. Bus lines M29 and 171 also stop at Hermannplatz. From Kottbusser Tor in Kreuzberg it is roughly a fifteen-minute walk across the Landwehrkanal.
No. The Afghan Communication and Cultural Centre is an Afghan self-help association and explicitly also an open house for Berliners without Afghan roots. Anyone who lives in the Reuterkiez, wants to practise German, listen to Afghan music or help out is just as welcome.
About the associationGerman and Dari — the association has worked bilingually since it was founded. Depending on which volunteers are there, interpreting in Pashto, Urdu or English is possible too. A written enquiry is answered in the language you ask for.
Nothing. The open consultation hour, explaining letters from public authorities, filling in applications and referring you onwards are all free of charge — membership is not required. The association has no paid staff and charges no fee.
See everything we offerWith everything in everyday life that runs on paper: understanding decisions and official post, filling in applications for the Jobcenter, BAMF, housing benefit, child benefit and BAföG, objections and deadlines, accompanying you to authorities, school and training, recognition of certificates, job applications, looking for a flat — and referral to lawyers and specialist advice centres when that is where a case belongs.
Support & adviceNeither. The Afghan Communication and Cultural Centre is a voluntary self-help association: the people advising here have been through the same procedures themselves. Anything that has to be decided legally is passed on to lawyers and specialist advice centres.
No. Advice and the open meeting place are open to everyone, regardless of membership. People become members in order to carry the association and to have a vote at the general meeting — not in order to receive help.
Become a memberYes. What is discussed in the consultation stays inside the association. Details from the forms on this website are used solely to answer your enquiry and are not passed on to third parties who have nothing to do with it.
PrivacyNauruz, the Afghan New Year, is celebrated around 21 March and is the biggest date of the year: music, food, dancing and Haft Mewa. The festival is open to the whole neighbourhood, not just to members.
The year at the associationA date only appears on this website once it has been confirmed — there are no invented dates here. If you want to hear about the next event first, sign up for the notification on the programme page or follow the association on Instagram.
Get notified about datesLiterary and poetry evenings, music evenings, film evenings and panels are free. The same goes for Nauruz and the Eid celebrations: open to everyone, no admission fee and no registration.
No programme, no admission, no registration: there is tea, conversation and the chance to ask a question. You can come because you need something — or simply because you want to talk. The open meeting place runs on the three opening days: Monday, Wednesday and Friday.
Meeting placeBy arrangement and depending on availability there is room for group meetings — above all for initiatives and groups from the Reuterkiez. A short enquiry by phone or email will clarify whether it fits.
Send an enquiryThe Afghan Communication and Cultural Centre was founded in Berlin in 1987 and has been active on a voluntary basis ever since without interruption — by now almost four decades. On its own anniversary poster the association sums up its work as „30 Jahre Ehrenamtliche Integration, Kultur und Menschenrechtsarbeit“: thirty years of voluntary integration, culture and human rights work.
The historyThat the association belongs to its members and nobody from outside decides what is good for the community. Whoever explains here how a Jobcenter decision works has sat at the kitchen table with such a decision themselves. There is no management board above it and no paid staff.
With a short enquiry by phone, email or in person during opening hours. The amount of the annual fee is set by the statutes; nobody is turned away because of it. The membership form comes back to you together with the current details.
Ask about membershipWhat is needed most is interpreting in Dari or Pashto, help with applications and official post, hands for setting up and clearing away festivals, homework support for children and young people, and looking after Instagram and the website. Two reliable hours a week are enough, and no previous experience is required.
Six ways to volunteerYes. The association passes on the bank details for money donations personally — a short email or a phone call is enough. Also needed are chairs, tables and shelves, a working laptop or printer, books in Dari, Pashto and German, simple event technology and a room for a larger festival.
Support usEnquiries come together with Sabour Zamani — by phone on +49 179 6696090, by email to Asbourzam@outlook.de or simply in person during opening hours at Reuterstraße 15.
ContactThen ask it the way you would say it — in German or in Dari. A person answers, not a hotline. If you would rather ask in person, come by on a Monday, Wednesday or Friday.
