Transition Initiatives Home » About Transition Initiatives » Country Programs » Summary of Program Activities » Lessons Learned » Publications » Staff » Employment » Links » Frequently Asked Questions » Site Map »
	OTI / Afghanistan Home Program Description Country Reports Select a report... June 2005 May 2005 April 2005 March 2005 February 2005 January 2005 December 2004 November 2004 October 2004 September 2004 August 2004 July 2004 June 2004 May 2004 April 2004 March 2004 February 2004 January 2004 December 2003 November 2003 September 2003 August 2003 July 2003 June 2003 May 2003 April 2003 March 2003 February 2003 January 2003 December 2002 November 2002 October 2002 September 2002 August 2002 July 2002 June 2002 May 2002 April 2002 March 2002 Jan/Feb 2002 December 2001 Fact Sheets September 2005 July 2004 March 2004 July 2003 July 2003 Hot Topics April 2005 April 2005 July 2004 June 2004 April 2004 Press Releases Support to Rural Homes and Livelihoods Direct Support to the Government of Afghanistan Support to Media Support to Women Afghanistan Photo Gallery
	Advanced search... Search USAID Personnel... Search USAID Documents...

USAID/OTI Afghanistan Field Report

September 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 strengthen independent media, and to increase news and information about the implementation of the Loya Jirga process. OTI's estimated budget for FY2002 is $26,869,476.

Country Situation

September marked the one year anniversary of the terrorist attacks in the United States. Security remained tight across Afghanistan in anticipation of possible violence and numerous security incidences were reported across the country. On September 5, a powerful car bomb in front of the Ministry of Information and Culture in Kabul killed scores of people. On the same day, President Hamid Karzai survived an assassination attempt in the southern city of Kandahar. On September 28, two rockets were fired near the U.S. Embassy in Kabul; no casualties were reported.

Despite heightened security concerns, the post-Loya Jirga Islamic Transitional Government of Afghanistan continued to collaborate with foreign donors and moved forward with programs to restore economic stability in the war-ravaged country. In early September, President Karzai announced the introduction of new currency notes to help control massive inflation and stabilize the economy. On September 12, in a joint meeting with President Karzai in New York, President Bush announced that the United States, along with Saudi Arabia and Japan, would provide $180 million to reconstruct the Kabul-Kandahar-Herat road. In late September, donor nations pledged tens of millions of dollars to help bridge a shortfall in Afghanistan's budget and speed up reconstruction of the country. Also in September, the Transitional Government of Afghanistan selected a new private mobile communications company to work on Afghanistan telecommunications projects. This step allows for competition with the current company, AWCC (Afghan Wireless).

The transitional government's greatest challenge is to engender the confidence of its people through rapid and meaningful improvements in their lives. This includes insuring that any work performed by other donors is perceived as direct support from the new Islamic Transitional Government of Afghanistan (ITGA). If Afghan citizens, particularly outside of Kabul, do not receive news about ITGA's accomplishments, there is a danger that local warlords will gain legitimacy among the population.

OTI Highlights

A. Narrative Summary

OTI's goals with USAID are to promote political stability and economic recovery in Afghanistan. Projects strengthen economic recovery by providing essential goods and services that individuals and the market cannot provide on their own -- through improving essential commercial and public infrastructure, reestablishing the relationships and routines that give communities cohesiveness, contributing to sustainable stability and recovery by establishing links between the community and governmental authorities, and establishing links between the provinces and Kabul.

OTI's overall program strategy is to build government capacities through the process of planning and implementing projects that are guided by community priorities, and by creating and/or strengthening linkages among the national, provincial, and district governments. OTI is also improving the communication infrastructure and implementing a comprehensive media strategy.

Highlights of OTI's Afghanistan program during the month of September include:

• Work with the Central Bank of Afghanistan to set up an international electronic system to transfer funds (SWIFT) from a foreign country, thus allowing the transfer to Afghanistan of up to $100 million in donor funds that could not be transferred until the system was operational;
• Ongoing project development with the Afghanistan ministries in Kabul;
• Site visits and assessments by OTI field staff to Kandahar and Parwan, Kapisa, Helmand, Badakhshan, Kunduz, and Takhar;
• Continued coordination by OTI field program manager with U.S. Army Civil Affairs representatives;
• Dissemination of information to the general public about new projects supporting the central government in Kabul;
• OTI attendance at a media conference in Kabul on establishing a free media strategy in Afghanistan. OTI also funded the participation of a legal advisor to the conference through Internews;
• Site visits by OTI's IOM-ATI Kabul staff to a number of provinces bordering Kabul;
• Continued project development and implementation at the IOM-ATI (International Organization for Migration-Afghanistan Transition Initiative) field offices;
• Presentation of a draft Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Education which will serve as a blanket agreement for future school construction and rehabilitation projects in Afghanistan;
• Assistance for USAID Deputy Administrator Fred Schieck's visits to USAID/OTI projects in Kabul, Herat, Bamyan, and Kandahar; and,
• Support to OMB representative, Kevin Kreutner, during his visit to Afghanistan.

Badghis Province

In September, IOM-ATI staff undertook site assessments of a number of schools in Badghis province. The assessment revealed that the cost of transporting construction materials within the province was one of the primary problems affecting programming in the province. IOM-ATI staff resolved this issue by working closely with the head of the Transportation Department, the head of the Education Department, and the governor of Badghis province.

Bamyan

The political and security situation in Bamyan remains tense. Although Ruy-e-Sang village, where IOM-ATI and the People in Need Foundation are building schools has again been caught in factional fighting, progress continues and the schools should be completed in a few weeks.

Balkh Province

Any newly planned, USAID-supported, non-humanitarian work in Balkh province continues to be on hold until the perpetrators of the rape of the American woman several months ago are brought to justice.

Fighting between Junbish and Jamiat factions has again embroiled Dehdadi, Dar-e-Suf, and Balkh, but crime reports in Mazar-e Sharif have decreased.

Civilian-Military Update

Most of the U.S. Army Civil Affairs field teams have been in country since March, 2002. The field teams, known as the "CHLC" (Coalition Humanitarian Liaison Cells) are members of the 489th CA Brigade from Knoxville, TN and the 401st from Rochester, NY. These teams focus on identifying high visibility, quick impact projects in 10 different regions of Afghanistan. To date, they have completed 234 projects valued at approximately $10 million and funded by DOD's Overseas Humanitarian, Disaster and Civic Aid funds.

Coordination between the CHLCs' and international organizations and NGOs is improving. USAID initiated several meetings between the CHLCs, the UN, IOM, and other organizations, which facilitated the exchange of useful information. In instances where the IO or NGO was unable or unwilling to meet with the CHLC, USAID has become the bridge between the two -- sharing project information and laying the ground work for a cooperative community relationship.

A conference, co-hosted by USAID and DOD, will take place in Washington from October 7 to 8. The goal of the conference is to explore lessons learned regarding civilian and military coordination in Afghanistan.

B. Grants Activity Summary for OTI Programming in Afghanistan for FY 2002 (October 1, 2001 - September 30, 2002)

OTI signed the following 7 small grants during the current reporting period (September 2002):

NEXT STEPS/IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES

During the month of October, OTI will:

• Undertake an assessment of the southeast (Paktia, Paktika, Khost) to follow up on an Afghan government and USAID request to provide reconstruction support to the region;
• Hire a local program manager for media programming;
• Open a field office in Gardez, Paktia province, through IOM-ATI, with programming to begin in November;
• Prepare for a number of project inaugurations in Kabul and Herat;
• Hold a teambuilding, strategy planning meeting among all program staff in Kabul (OTI, IOM-ATI, and SWIFT Contractor);
• Sign grants with various media organizations to begin implementation of the post-Loya Jirga media strategy;
• Attend a civil-military conference in Washington, D.C. that will help a civilain-military research team prepare for its mission in Afghanistan; and,
• Conclude a media assessment in Bamyan.