The Ministry of Transport said on Wednesday that efforts are ongoing for Afghans to manage airport services around the country.

The ministry’s spokesman said that work on the purchase and installation of standard machines in the country’s airports is ongoing, and with the installation of the machines, services will be provided by Afghans themselves in a few months.

“In a few months, Afghan aviation services will be provided by the Afghans themselves. Previously, services were provided by Americans. We needed equipment. According to the contract, the equipment will be brought in and installed. The problems in this sector will be solved and it is expected that more foreign airlines will carry out flights to Afghanistan,” Imamuddin Ahmadi said.

According to Ahmadi, with the establishment of the first air cargo company in the country, they want domestic products to be transferred to global markets by domestic airlines.

“From now on, our fresh and dried fruit will reach countries on time,” Ahmadi said.

Some investors also said that more efforts should be made in the development of air freight because the fresh fruit of Afghanistan must be transferred to the global markets on time in order to prevent it from being perished.

“Since fuel materials are decreasing day by day and prices are increasing, my suggestion to the Islamic Emirate is that we should build infrastructure right now. Let’s build our agricultural products processing hubs in all airports. Let’s build cold storages and prepare the logistics system,” Sherbaz Kaminzada, the head of the Chamber of Industries and Mines, said.

Afghanistan Telecom Regulatory Authority (ATRA) said on Tuesday that for the first time, a ceiling has been set on the charges of internet and phone calls across the country, and there has been a 40-50% reduction in costs.

ATRA spokesman said that previously 1GB data cost 250 afghanis, but now the price has been set at 110 afghanis.

“The rate of calls from one network to another is set at 2.2 Afghani per minute. Previously, calls were charged every sixty seconds, but now it has been reduced to 30 seconds. For example, if we call someone and talk for five or six seconds, it used to count as sixty seconds, but now it counts as 30 seconds.

“There has been a significant reduction in the price of the internet. The price of one GB of internet for telecommunication companies is set at 110 Afghanis and they cannot offer more than this,” said Jalal Shams, ATRA’s spokesman.

The authority said that telecommunication coverage has increased compared to the past and telecommunication services have been expanded in remote areas. Officials said that ATRA earned 1.2 billion Afghanis in the solar year 1401.

“The plan that ATRA is currently working on is quality improvement. The most important one is standard frequency. A standard frequency is given for telecommunication networks. Work on the distribution mechanism is ongoing. Currently, the frequency that telecommunication networks use for 4G is not the 4G frequency. They use 3G frequency for 4G, the reason why there is a problem with the quality,” Shams said.

Citizens also call on the government and telecommunications companies to improve the quality of services in addition to reducing the rates of internet services and telephone calls.

“We are satisfied with the government for reducing internet packages. But the demand of Afghan people from internet service providers is that the quality should be improved, because the quality is very low,” said Musawir Darwesh, a Kabul resident.

“Alhamdulillah, we are satisfied with the internet, but we don’t have the internet as we should have,” said Reshad Insan Dost, a Kabul resident.

There are currently five telecommunication companies operating in the country, and the Afghan Wireless Communication Company (AWCC) has the largest coverage in the country.

The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) has confirmed that Mawlawi Abdul Kabir has been appointed as acting prime minister in the absence of Mullah Mohammad Hasan Akhund who has taken ill.

Mohammad Hasan Haqyar, chief of protocol and media of the political deputy prime minister, told Ariana News late Tuesday night that Akhund has not been in the public eye for the past few months due to ill health. Kabir, his political deputy, has been mostly standing in for Akhund and meeting with foreign dignitaries.

The IEA has not revealed details on Akhund’s illness but sources have said in the past that he was suffering from heart disease.

Mawlawi Abdul Kabir is from Paktika province and is believed to be from the Zadran tribe. He was previously the governor of Nangarhar during the former IEA regime in the 1990s.

Reports have also indicated in the past that following the ousting of the IEA in 2001, Kabir was appointed as head of the Peshawar Council.

He also played an important role in the IEA’s negotiations with the US in Qatar.

Following the IEA’s takeover in August 2021, he was initially appointed as assistant to the economic deputy of Akhund and later as the political deputy of the IEA’s prime minister.

The IEA’s spokesman has confirmed that the Prime Minister of the Islamic Emirate, Mullah Mohammad Hassan Akhund, is in Kandahar for a short time for treatment and rest.

“So that the work does not face obstacles and delays, the political deputy of the prime minister, Honorable Mawlawi Abdul Kabir, is carrying out the work as a care-taker,” Zabiullah Mujahid tweeted.

According to Mujahid this process is a normal procedure in governance, and added that “no one is trying to raise concerns and propaganda about it, nor do the citizens have any concerns.”