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Water affairs board discusses Panjshir-Kabul water conduit project
The Islamic Emirate’s Water Affairs Regulatory Board convened a meeting Sunday to discuss the implementation of a water conduit project for the transfer of water from Panjshir River to Kabul.
The meeting was chaired by the administrative deputy prime minister and attended by representatives of the ministries of finance, water and energy, urban development and housing, agriculture and livestock, rural rehabilitation and development, the National Environmental Protection Agency and the state-owned water supply company.
In the meeting, there was a discussion about the regulation of water affairs, people’s access to clean drinking water, the implementation of the Panjshir to Kabul water conduit project, its duration, costs and water capacity.
“There is a water problem in Kabul city both quantitatively and qualitatively, and various reasons for this issue can be analyzed, including the arbitrary digging of wells, the increase in population without planning and the weak and sub-standard water supply system,” the deputy minister of economy Abdul Latif Nazari, said.
Recent droughts and climate change have caused a severe shortage of water for drinking and irrigation purposes in many provinces.
“Water is scarce here. The living conditions are not good. We want help to improve our living conditions,” Jihad Dad, a resident of Kandahar province, said.
There is no clean running water in Kabul, and the excessive use of groundwater has caused groundwater levels to drop considerably. In some parts of the capital, the water level has dropped by up to 100 meters.
Some Kabul residents wait in long queues to get drinking water daily.
Experts say that providing drinking water in the capital is critical and the government should act in this regard.
“The government has not been able to take care of the systems that were already activated. People have faced many problems. They do not have enough access to clean water. Drought also increases with each passing day. It is the government’s responsibility to provide water to the people of Kabul and use the water that is wasted in other places,” Lal Zazi, an expert on economic affairs, says.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan announced on Tuesday the release of American citizen Dennis Coyle from prison.
According to the ministry, Coyle’s mother had written to the leader of the Islamic Emirate demanding amnesty and the release of her son on the occasion of Eid. The Supreme Court considered time served sufficient and decided to release him.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that this action was carried out on the basis of humanitarianism and good faith, and it believes that such measures can strengthen trust between countries. The ministry also expressed hope that both countries, in the future, can find solutions to remaining issues through mutual understanding and constructive dialogue.
The Islamic Emirate also expressed appreciation for the cooperation of the United Arab Emirates in this matter.
Separately, for Coyle’s release, an American delegation, including Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. Special Representative for Afghanistan, met on Tuesday with Amir Khan Muttaqi, the Foreign Minister of the Islamic Emirate.
The meeting was also attended by Saif Mohammed Al-Ketbi, Ambassador of the UAE in Kabul, and a member of the prisoner’s family.
According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Muttaqi stated that the Islamic Emirate has not detained any citizen of any country to achieve political objectives; rather, detentions were the result of legal violations, and individuals were released after completing judicial procedures.
At the meeting, Khalilzad praised the action of the Islamic Emirate and emphasized the importance of continuing discussions on all issues between the two countries, expressing hope for further progress in the future.
Muttaqi also stressed that Kabul and the UAE should provide standard consular services to their citizens, and that the Afghan government is fully prepared in this regard.
He thanked Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, for their constructive role in facilitating the release of the prisoner and referred to the UAE as a close friend of Afghanistan.
Earlier, Muttaqi had also praised the role of the State of Qatar in facilitating information exchange between the Islamic Emirate and the prisoner’s family.
Additionally, the UAE ambassador expressed his country’s readiness to play a role in humanitarian institutions and called such developments beneficial for everyone.
The United Kingdom has announced an additional £3 million (AFN 257 million) in humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan, aimed at supporting people affected by natural disasters and other shocks.
Richard Lindsay, in a post on X, said the funding will be used to provide essential nutrition supplies and related support to vulnerable populations.
The new allocation brings the UK’s total bilateral assistance to Afghanistan for the current financial year to £154 million (AFN 13.18 billion).
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