PTI: Underlining that black money is one of the main sources of funding terror activities, Afghanistan today welcomed India’s decision to demonetise high-denomination currency, saying the move will benefit the region. Afghan Ambassador to India Shaida Abdali said the move will help curb economic terrorism by foiling the usage of counterfeit currency for terror activities. Click
Reuters: Afghan Taliban militants have strengthened their grip on lucrative illegal mining operations in the north of the country, as security forces focus most of their efforts on battling the insurgency in the volatile south, officials said. Abuses by local commanders with private militias and beyond the purview of central government have also driven people into
Tolo News: Sayed Mustafa Kazemi, former member of Wolesi Jirga (Lower House of Parliament), who was killed in an explosion in Baghlan province in 2007, had been a skilled economist who tried hard to put his country on the road to economic success. Today, a number of his plans have been implemented. Two key projects Kazimi
The Guardian (UK): When I worked as an adviser to the Afghanistan government, even the smallest of infrastructure projects became politicised and overshadowed by corruption. When the ministry wanted to provide clean water to villagers, it was sometimes only possible if private companies belonging to local power brokers – usually MPs, district administrators or police chiefs
Michael Hughes: The latest Afghan reconstruction watchdog report reveals that billions of dollars’ worth of U.S. stabilization programs have failed to, well, stabilize Afghanistan – whatever that word really means. Many of us know that “stabilization” in the context of Western post-invasion state-building endeavors is really code for capitalistic democratization. In fact, many involved have a
Ayaz Gul / VOA News October 30, 2016 ISLAMABAD — Afghanistan’s security forces battling the resurgent Taliban have suffered around 15,000 casualties, including 5,523 fatalities in the first eight months of 2016, says a U.S. government monitoring agency. The agency has also warned of eroding gains the war-shattered country has made with the help of the
Tolo News: Afghan saffron has for the third year in a row been rated as the best in the world. The International Taste and Quality Institute in Brussels ranked Afghan saffron as having the best taste and quality amongst 300 samples from different countries, news agencies reported. The Institute was founded in 2003 in Brussels
AP: Every day that Dil Agha works at his backbreaking job at a brick kiln on the outskirts of Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, from before sunrise to well after sunset, he digs himself deeper into debt. He knows he will never be able to pay back what he owes to the kiln owner who lent him a
ReliefWeb: The World Bank’s Board of Executive Directors today approved $120 million in grants for Afghanistan and discussed the 2017-2020 Country Partnership Framework (CPF) that sets out the institution’s plans for supporting the country in ending poverty. The $120 million in grants consists of $100 million to bring infrastructure and social services, including drinking water access for
ReliefWeb: “Water is the lifeblood of the people of Afghanistan, not just for living but also for the economy, which has traditionally been dominated by agriculture.” Nearly “80% of Afghanistan’s population derive their livelihood from the agriculture sector.” And, agriculture remains one of Afghanistan’s principal growth sectors. But, decades of conflict combined with deteriorating infrastructures and