Afghanistan has the potential to become an electricity exporter: Deputy PM
Meanwhile, the head of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS), Abdul Bari Omar, said that Afghanistan has the capacity for investment of up to $5 billion in the electricity sector and they are trying to provide more facilities to the people.
Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, deputy prime minister for political affairs, said on Monday Afghanistan had the potential to become an electricity exporter, but it still imports its power.
He made the remarks at a conference on Afghanistan's electricity investment opportunities.
"Afghanistan has great potential to generate electricity," he said. “This conference will introduce opportunities for domestic and foreign investors. I hope this conference will prove to be important for attracting investment in the energy sector. For a war-torn country like Afghanistan, it is important to use its resources to strengthen the economy, produce energy and become self-sufficient. Afghanistan can become an energy producer and exporter in the region by using its resources.”
Meanwhile, the head of Da Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat (DABS), Abdul Bari Omar, said that Afghanistan has the capacity for investment of up to $5 billion in the electricity sector and they are trying to provide more facilities to the people.
He called on the international community not to politicize the issue of electricity and continue its assistance in the fight against climate change.
"There are many problems in the grids, substations, junctions and transmission lines," he said. “People should know that we did not inherit a system from the previous administration that is sound. The transmission line from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan is very weak, not having enough capacity to transmit the required electricity. Our technical waste of electricity is 13 percent. The Islamic Emirate has reduced technical losses by up to five percent.”
According to Omar, strongmen and politicians of the former government owe 2 billion Afghanis to DABS.
Meanwhile, Acting Minister of Industry and Commerce Nooruddin Azizi said that manufacturing companies are suffering from a shortage of electricity.
"In the near future, we will have 800 companies requesting land in the capital," Azizi said. “We need 50 to 100 MW of electricity for each company.”
Acting Minister of Information and Culture Khairullah Khairkhah also highlighted the role of the media in reflecting the country's prosperity and progress.
At the conference, DABS officials said that in addition to repairing the grids, they need to repair the electricity meters, and more than 500,000 meters are still not included in the system.
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Health
Afghanistan’s health ministry convenes urgent meeting on disease outbreak in Parwan
Haqqani ordered specialized health teams to be deployed to the affected area and ordered a follow up meeting to be convened with World Health Organization representatives and other health partners.
The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) called an urgent meeting Sunday of senior health-care officials to address the outbreak of acute diarrhea in the Kafshan Valley of Ghurbund district in Parwan province.
This comes after concerns were raised last week by Parwan officials who confirmed that over 500 people had come down with a mystery illness.
Hekmatullah Shamim, the governor’s spokesman, said the affected people had all fallen ill over four-days.
The IEA’s Ministry of Health sent officials to the affected area and blood samples were taken from patients for analysis.
In a statement issued Sunday by the ministry, the deputy minister for health services Mawlawi Abdulwali Haqqani called the meeting, which was attended by central directors from the ministry, representatives from the infectious disease hospital and other experts.
Haqqani ordered specialized health teams to be deployed to the affected area and ordered a follow up meeting to be convened with World Health Organization representatives and other health partners.
The teams deployed to the area will focus on raising public awareness, assessing the health status of patients, and ensuring the provision of comprehensive medical facilities for both patients and local residents.
“These efforts are critical to facilitate urgent interventions necessary to mitigate the outbreak,” the statement read.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), Afghanistan is grappling with significant health challenges marked by a fragile healthcare system and unequal access to services, particularly in rural areas.
In their latest report published last week, the Health Cluster Afghanistan Bulletin for August 2024, the WHO said there is a looming threat of disease outbreaks, including acute watery diarrhea (AWD), measles, Crimean Congo Hemorrhagic Fever (CCHF), dengue fever, COVID-19, pertussis (whooping cough), and malaria.
In August 2024, a total of 402,920 cases of acute diarrheal disease were reported, representing 14.6 percent of total consultations.
Out of the total acute diarrheal disease cases, 23,801 new AWD, with dehydration, cases were reported in August, resulting in 10 deaths.
So far this year, total of 125,471 AWD cases with dehydration and 60 associated deaths were reported, the WHO report stated.
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