Priority 2. Strengthen Afghan institutional capacity to deliver core services and promote economic growth, enhancing the confidence of Kandaharis in their government.
The delivery of basic services to citizens is a critical performance test for any government. In Afghanistan, improving service delivery is essential to building public confidence in Afghan governance and to accelerating economic development. It is also a necessary element in any long-run resolution of the insurgency.
Canadian Objective for 2011: By 2011, we expect that Kandahar’s provincial administration and core ministries of the Afghan government will be better able to provide basic services to key districts of Kandahar province.
One of Canada’s signature projects in Kandahar is the building, expansion or repair of 50 schools in key districts by 2011. In this quarter, two more schools were completed; a total of five have been completed since this project began last year. Another 25 schools were under construction during the quarter. Vocational and literacy training courses are also part of this Canadian priority. In January, about 11,000 Kandaharis (including almost 9,000 women) completed a 10-month literacy course. In February, 470 adults completed vocational training that included courses in tailoring, carpet weaving, carpentry, plumbing, knitting and marble work; trainees received toolkits on graduation.
In Kabul, an Education Development Board has been established in cooperation with the Afghan government. Co-chaired by Canada, the Board has a mandate to improve coordination between Afghanistan’s Ministry of Education, the international donor community and Afghan non-governmental organizations, and to advise the Ministry. Canada is providing $500,000 for the Board’s start-up costs and staffing.
Important progress was recorded on another of Canada’s signature projects, the rehabilitation of the Dahla Dam and its irrigation system. A new bridge, needed to carry dam-building machinery, was completed and opened to traffic. A new road for the project neared completion. In February, professionals from the Canadian firms leading the project, SNC-Lavalin and Hydrosult, conducted an inception mission to map out work at the site, prepare a security plan and consult government officials and community leaders in Kabul and Kandahar. This marked a significant step forward on a major development undertaking. The $50 million project is expected to create up to 10,000 seasonal jobs throughout the local economy.
