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USAID/OTI Afghanistan Field Report

June 2002

Program Description

USAID/OTI's program goal is to support the process of recovery, rehabilitation and political development in post-conflict Afghanistan. Working with a number of local and international partners, OTI's program is building citizen confidence in the progress of political development, empowering citizens to address basic community needs, and building an alliance between legitimate government structures and citizens. In addition, OTI supports efforts to increase news and information about the Loya Jirga process and to strengthen independent media. OTI's estimated budget for FY2002 is $21,132,000.

Country Situation

Hamid Karzai addresses delegates of the 1500-member Loya Jirga, or Grand Council, after they elected him as President of Afghanistan's Transitional Authority. The Transitional Authority will rule the country for the next two years. Photo by Sally Hodgsons.

The Emergency Loya Jirga, a grand legislative council assembling some 1,600 Afghans from around the country, was held in June. One hundred sixty women attended the event. As expected, Hamid Karzai was elected president and members of the cabinet were selected. The event provided a chance for people from all over Afghanistan to come together and participate in a passionate dialogue on the future of their nation.

The Loya Jirga and the formation of the Islamic Transitional Government of Afghanistan (ITGA) has been the most notable event since the Bonn Agreement. However, subsequent political maneuvering and the unfortunate assassination of a key cabinet member have cast some doubt over the strength and coherence of Karzai's government. Furthermore, ministry offices in Kabul and the rest of the country are working at a painfully low level of effectiveness because of a combination of lack of resources, lack of management and administrative capacity, and lack of adequate communication. Nevertheless, the Afghanistan government is determined to take strong steps to preserve the ITGA and move the country forward politically and economically.

Also in June, Turkey, the only Muslim nation in the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, took over as head of the International Security Assistance Force from the United Kingdom.

Key events in the coming weeks include: the continued emergence of Karzai's government; the continued receipt of international assistance; the initiation of several long-awaited projects and programs; and the initiation of several Bonn-mandated commissions.

OTI Highlights

A. Narrative Summary

OTI's overall strategy is to build government capacity through the process of planning and implementing projects which are guided by community priorities. OTI continues to refine its post Loya Jirga strategy in collaboration with implementing partners IOM and RONCO - while keeping in mind USAID's strategic objectives: infrastructure, food security, economic governance, and democracy and governance.

Highlights of OTI's work in Afghanistan during the month of June include:

• project development with the Afghanistan ministries in Kabul;
• media support and other stopgap measures for the Emergency Loya Jirga to ensure that Radio Afghanistan could begin broadcasting nationwide in early June;
• deploying an OTI Senior Field Advisor to Mazar, Konduz, and Khandahar in coordination with IOM and U.S. Civil Affairs representatives;
• hiring a local program assistant;
• finalizing the employment of two field staff members who arrived in Kabul June;
• making public information about new projects that are supporting the new government in Kabul;
• opening a logistics and procurement support office in Dubai through OTI's SWIFT contractor, RONCO.

During June OTI staff traveled to the province of Mazar-e-Sharif and reported that, in some respects, it is recovering. The region had a reasonable harvest this year, IDPs are returning to their villages, construction and reconstruction is ongoing, and consumer goods are available in local shops. Nevertheless, there are reports of Pashtuns being forcibly evicted. Pashtun IDPs are moving to the borders, as far south as Khandahar. Further, NGOs and IOs are under threat, with several robberies and the rape of an American woman working for a French NGO. USAID's Mission Director, Craig Buck, also traveled to Mazar in June to deliver a strong message to support peace and stability in the region. The Mission Director's message included a statement that until the security situation improved, economic recovery projects would be suspended. USAID/OTI will not be initiating any new projects in Mazar until the perpetrators of the rape of the NGO woman are brought to justice.

OTI staff also traveled to Khandahar where they noted that devastating drought is forcing people to leave their villages. Without enormous investment and coordination among all partners to reverse the trend, the result will be another round of large IDP camps this fall and winter. Staff reported that the area is a difficult environment in which to work and the security situation remains tenuous. There is a need to investigate irrigation schemes and to understand what is happening with water systems, including the aquifer, water releases from dams, and the possibility of deep water mining.

Khandahar province is facing dramatic unemployment with estimates running as high as 70%. In meetings with various Khandaharis, NGOs, and IOs, the most frequently identified needs are for roads, irrigation projects, water, job development (textile, nut and raisin industries), primary and secondary education, and vocational training. OTI will continue to work closely with IOM-ATI staff to investigate projects for funding in Khandahar.

Present at the signing were Minister of Water and Power M. Shaker Kargar, Deputy Minister M. Younus Nawandish, head of the Department of Electricity Hamayoon Kohistani, USAID Mission Director Craig Buck, U.S. Charge David Sedney, and OTI Staff. Source: OTI

OTI provided three grants to the Ministry of Water and Power in Kabul, totaling an estimated $130,000. The first grant provided electrical cable, transformers, spare parts, and two vehicles to the Ministry of Water and Power. Two transformers are being used to provide electricity for 22,000 people in the Mohammadia and Khuja Bujhra areas of Kabul.

The second grant provided $50,000 in material and labor costs to rehabilitate the building of the Ministry of Water and Power. The third grant provided $10,000 in material inputs for a kindergarten in the Ministry of Water and Power, which will enable women employees, particularly widows, to return to work. The latter two grants are being implemented in coordination with UNDP's Program Implementation Unit (PIU), and are designed to show a peace dividend by providing direct support to the Afghanistan Interim Administration, create job opportunities for local Afghan contractor employees, and support the Afghan Interim Administration's objective to increase the participation of women in government work.

Another major issue confronting residents of Kabul is that of ongoing electrical breakdowns, vandalism, and parts failure. The Ministry reported an urgent need for technicians to provide regular roaming electrical repair service, particularly during the critical time of the Loya Jirga. A USAID grant will provide two medium-size vehicles to provide transportation for roaming electrical repairs.

In Washington, OTI signed a $3 million agreement to the UNDP for the UNDP Loya Jirga Trust Fund, for logistics/operational support during the Emergency Loya Jirga.

OTI signed the following 21 small grants during the current reporting period:

B. Grants Activity Summary for OTI Programming in Afghanistan for June 2002

NEXT STEPS/IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES

During the month of July, OTI will:

• work with the USAID Mission, IOM-ATI, SWIFT contractor RONCO, and the Afghanistan government to refine a post Loya Jirga country strategy;
• continue to refine and implement a media strategy;
• expand IOM-ATI's coverage to include Konduz and Maimana;
• expand SWIFT contractor RONCO's coverage to extend along the Jalalabad road as part of decentralizing the SWIFT contractor's activities out of Kabul;
• hire a local program manager for media and a general program manager.