Business
ADB Signs $415M Contract with Afghan Gov’t to Support Energy Sector
Afghanistan Ministry of Finance and the Asian Development Bank (ADB signed a contract worth 415 million dollars to boost Afghanistan’s energy supply and strengthen the country’s cross-border trade in energy.
The assistance includes $188.23 million from the ADB Asian Development Fund; $225.77 million in co-financing from the Afghanistan Infrastructure Trust Fund supported by the Governments of Belgium, Canada, Germany, the Netherlands, and the United States; and $1 million from the People’s Republic of China Regional Cooperation and Poverty Reduction Fund.
The Afghan government will also allocate $5 million for the second installment of this project from its own internal resources.
“We are grateful for the continued support of ADB to the energy sector in Afghanistan,” said Eklil Hakimi, Afghan Minister of Finance. “Energy is one of the government’s priority sectors and a foundation for economic growth. The Government of Afghanistan and ADB will continue working closely to develop the energy sector for the improved livelihoods and welfare of all Afghans.”
ADB also considers this project very essential for the economic growth of Afghanistan.
“Insufficient energy supplies severely constrain economic development and income opportunities across Afghanistan,” said Thomas Panella, ADB Country Director in Afghanistan. “This assistance will support the government’s national energy supply program, which will expand power supply to boost economic growth, provide employment, and reduce poverty.”
ADB is Afghanistan’s largest development partner in the energy sector with cumulative grant assistance of nearly $2.2 billion all of which is on budget.
ADB has been working to not only develop power imports for urgently needed electricity, but to provide distribution systems; develop domestic generation; build capacity and promote institutional reforms; and is currently developing a large renewable program that will include off-grid options.
The Ministry of Commerce and Industry said Thursday it has signed cooperation agreements with ten institutions to support the development of small and medium-sized enterprises.
Nooruddin Azizi, Acting Minister of Commerce and Industry, said: “In the implementation of projects, we must pay special attention to our activities and actions and try to make useful use of the projects according to the requirements and benefit the beneficiaries.”
These ten institutions are to present their projects, the total value of which is around over $1.1 million. The projects will be carried out in Kabul, Baghlan, Ghor, Herat, Logar, Nangarhar, Balkh, Badakhshan and Jawzjan provinces and provide direct jobs for about 1,000.
To date, the ministry has signed MoUs for 72 projects in total, collectively valued at about $53.6 million.
These agreements have been signed with domestic and foreign companies for the establishment of small and medium-sized businesses.
In accordance with the principles and laws of the Islamic Emirate and prioritizing the implementation of projects for immigrants and returnees and internally displaced people, the ministry said 635,865 people will benefit through jobs directly and over 4.3 million will benefit indirectly in 25 provinces once these projects are implemented.
The National Statistics and Information Authority (NSIA) confirmed Tuesday that in the last month of solar year 1402, (March 2024) Afghanistan’s exports totaled $141.1 million and imports totaled $789.6 million.
This was down from $174 million for exports in the same period in 1401. However, imports increased by $99.2 million in 1402, up from $690.4 million.
Most exports in the last month of 1402 went to Pakistan, India and the United Arab Emirates, while in the last month of 1401 exports went to Pakistan, India and China.
The Ministry of Interior said the governor of Herat province Islam Jar met with Alim Khan Yasin Gildaye, Ambassador of Kazakhstan to Afghanistan, to discuss various issues around trade.
According to the ministry, the two sides discussed the expansion of trade facilities, increasing the volume of trade exchanges between traders of the two countries, reducing customs tariffs, solving the challenges of traders and issuing visas to them.
The Afghanistan-Kazakhstan Chamber of Commerce has been opened in Herat in order to facilitate and increase trade between the two countries.
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