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Afghanistan water sources use by neighboring countries

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The fears of a security breakdown in Afghanistan boil the larger possibility of an economic collapse. The country's revenues seem abysmal, and the mismanagement of billions of dollars in aid has turned it entirely dependent on foreign donations and the presence of foreign troops.

With Afghanistan being largely an agricultural country, investment in the water sector should have been a natural priority for sustainable economic development. Yet, that is not the case. In the Afghanistan National Development Strategy, a framework for allocating international aid, water does not figure as a core development sector. Only 5 percent of development has gone into the water sector during the past decade.

The Ministry of Water and Energy says that Afghanistan water resources reaches to 57 billion cubic meters which the most parts of it use by neighboring countries.

Along the Afghanistan’s borders, villagers see their water flow into the neighboring countries without being able to use it for their own local fields. The scarcity of water has led to tensions between tribes and villages.

The ministry if water declared that the continuation of insecurity caused Afghanistan fails to effectively use its water from the construction of dams and other projects.

Officials in the ministry noted that the residents of the country must cooperate with the government in providing the security of water and electricity projects.

“The construction of dams takes long time and in some cases the works have not been done properly and on time. In addition, the main problem is insecurity that cause the projects face a deadlock,” Ali Ahmad Osmani, minister of Water and Energy said.

One of Afghanistan’s missed opportunities in the last decade was its failure to legislate a comprehensive water law. Existing law does not define water rights.

Land owners are also owners of water and landless farmers have no rights to water. The water management institutions are highly ineffective.

The lack of a database of natural resources and the limited ability of the government to collect data is another challenge and a major obstacle to planning and development.

Afghanistan has a population of 29 million, with 79% of the population living in rural areas. Only 27% of its population has access to improved water sources, and it goes down to 20% in rural areas, the lowest percentage in the world.

The numbers get even worse when you look at the percentage of people with access to improved sanitation facilities. With the numbers at 5% nationwide, and only 1% in rural areas, Afghanistan again ranks the worst in the world.

In Kabul, the capital, with a population of 6 million, 80% of the people lack access to safe drinking water, and 95% lack access to improved sanitation facilities.

Analysts say that reaching the safe driniking water is another challenges of Afghanistan residents which the people are suffering from.

Water is a collective issue for Afghanistan and its neighbors. Any solution should therefore be multinational. Nations involved in Afghanistan, in particular US-led forces, should avoid politicizing this problem as it is so vital to the future of Afghanistan and the region as a whole.


Investment decisions should be based not on efforts to deprive neighboring countries of water but on avoiding waste and improving utilization of resources.

Without regional cooperation, Afghanistan will be faced with deeper and unresolvable challenges that will be even more difficult to solve after most international forces leave in 2014.

 

 

 

 

 

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Suhail Shaheen meets with Chinese ambassador to Qatar

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The head of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) political office in Doha, Suhail Shaheen, met with China’s ambassador to Qatar late Monday for talks on bilateral relations, good neighborliness, and trade and investment opportunities between the two countries.

“About the Wakhan road, the export of Afghanistan's fresh fruit to China, the reconstruction of cold stores, China's assistance in the field of medical equipment to the Ministry of Health and good neighborliness between the two countries were discussed,” Shaheen said in a voice message.

China and the Islamic Emirate have been rapidly expanding relations in recent months.

Experts, meanwhile, have said that other countries need to engage with the IEA, as China is doing, in order for Afghanistan to come out of isolation.

Shaheen also met with Katharina Ritz, the head of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) delegation to Afghanistan.

He discussed numerous issues including humanitarian assistance, health sector challenges and climate change.

Both sides emphasized that ICRC activities need to be expanded, considering the needs of the people.

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IFRC reports over half of Afghanistan’s population needs urgent humanitarian aid

Afghanistan ranks among the most vulnerable countries globally to climate change and disaster risks

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The International Federation of Red Crescent (IFRC) has reported that Afghanistan continues to face prolonged and complex humanitarian crises.

IFRC said in a report published on Tuesday, that about 23.7 million people, more than half of Afghanistan’s population, are in urgent need of humanitarian aid.

According to the IFRC, natural disasters, the growing impact of climate change, population displacement, economic challenges, and food insecurity are the main factors contributing to Afghanistan’s ongoing humanitarian crisis.

Afghanistan ranks among the most vulnerable countries globally to climate change and disaster risks. 

The country is also prone to earthquakes, with nearly 400 tremors recorded in the last three years, including significant quakes, such as the 6.3 magnitude in Herat Province in October last year.

The compounding effects of disasters in the country have exacerbated the already fragile situation in Afghanistan, the IFRC’s report read. 

These successive disasters have pushed more Afghans into poverty and heightened their vulnerability. 

In addition, Afghanistan’s economic crisis is widespread, with more than half of households experiencing an economic shock. 

The country’s economy is heavily dependent on foreign aid and remittances, which have declined significantly since the political change in 2021. 

This has resulted in high levels of unemployment, challenging people’s coping mechanisms and thwarting the already fragile economy’s ability to adapt to shocks, the report read.

The IFRC said more than 85 percent of the country’s population is now living below the poverty line.

 

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Maldives recalls envoy to Pakistan over meeting with Afghanistan envoy

The island nation’s foreign ministry said the much publicized meeting had not been sanctioned by the government

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The Maldives government has recalled its top diplomat in Pakistan after he had an unauthorized meeting with an Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan envoy in Islamabad. 

The island nation’s foreign ministry said the much publicized meeting between the Maldives High Commissioner Mohamed Thoha and IEA envoy Sardar Ahmad Shakeeb on Friday had not been sanctioned by the government.

Maldives media reported that the foreign ministry stated: “Consequently, appropriate action has been taken by the government of Maldives.” 

Thoha’s name has also been removed from the website of the Maldives mission in Islamabad, and an official source told AFP that he had been recalled.

Since regained control of Afghanistan in August 2021, no country has yet officially recognized the government.

However, the IEA has been making inroads into the diplomatic arena and has official missions now stationed in a number of regional countries. 

 

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