Contracts of 55 rural welfare projects signed in Kabul

The project contracts were signed between Rural Rehabilitation and Development Minister Mujib Rahman Karimi, and representatives of local development councils.
Rahimi, after signing the contracts, said the schemes would be implemented in Badghis, Baghlan, Ghor, Kabul, Kandahar, Khost, Logar, Nuristan, Paktia, Paktika, Panjshir, Samangan, Takhar and Zabul provinces.
“These projects would cost a total of 522 million afghanis and would be implemented under the Afghanistan Rural Enterprise Development Program (AREDP),” he said.
He said local people would contribute a 10 percent (38 million afghanis) to the total cost while the rest would be paid by the government.
Karimi said 16 of the 55 projects included construction of water streams to facilitate local people in having access to drinking and irrigation water.
More than 144,000 people would get work opportunities during the implementation of these projects and nearly 157,000 other people would benefit, he added.
These projects include construction of streams, water supply networks, irrigation canals, irrigation dams, school buildings, mosques, retaining walls, roads and bridges, he said.
The MRRD has so far implemented 1,213 projects worth more than six billion afghanis which created jobs for 2.5 million people and benefited nearly six million people under AREDP.
Wahidullah Kharoti, a representative of Samandar Construction Company, which signed contracts of retaining walls with MRRD, said his company would construct two retaining walls in Khankhel and Babakrkhel villages in Sarobi district of Kabul.
He said the length of the walls was 2,300 meters and the project would cost 131 million afghanis.
Construction of these walls would protect around 10,000 families from the risk of floods and they would be completed in one year, he said.
Kharoti promised to maintain quality work and complete the project in the stipulated time.