Chrenkoff

"They practice on concrete rather than on grass, and their kit is far from uniform, but Afghanistan's premier women's football team is looking forward to making history this summer when it plays its first international match.

"Even before they step onto the pitch at the Banuwan women's competition in Iran in August, the women of Kabul Selected will have overcome more obstacles than most athletes.

"The team has been playing in organised leagues for a little more than a year. When they began, most training took place behind closed doors. While they still lack the amenities available to male players, the best players from the capital's 12 girls' teams have moved into the open."

"Following three days of discussions, some 150 provincial Ulema Council leaders or Islamic Religious scholars, agreed to put an end to racial, tribal and factional discriminations, which were the root causes of many of the factional fighting under the leadership of the Taliban and the Mujahideen...

"The meeting attended by scholars from Herat, Helmand, Kandahar and Uruzgon focused on five problems concerning Afghans, and eliminating poppy came top of the list, putting an end to disputes that erupt from racial, tribal and linguistic differences, was second on their agenda..

"Mulawi Khdadad Salhi, the head of Herat Ulema Council [said]...: 'We plan to preach to people through our mosques in order to end the hostilities which have been created during the past 25 years of civil war, fought under the Taliban and Mujahideen struggle'."

"Six months after a successful presidential poll, Afghanistan's fledgling political system is starting to prepare for a much more ambitious undertaking: parliamentary elections slated for 18 September.

"Already, colourful posters conveying party messages can be seen in public places in the capital Kabul, and in some provincial towns. Local TV and radio stations have begun airing debates and newspapers are full of editorials and comment on what sort of parliament might emerge from the historic election."

"One of the ways USAID is helping Afghanistan prepare for its September 18 parliamentary elections is through electoral civic education programs. Specific training for women political party activists is underway. In three provinces, 181 women attended this training, held at local Election Training & Information Centers (ETIC). A separate civic education initiative for all Afghans, underway since late October, has reached 437,000 voters as of March 10. Also, a candidate and parliamentarian training program began on March 14; attendance is 30-40 participants per day.

"To utilize Afghanistan's new thriving media outlets, two USAID trainers made radio broadcasts in both Dari and Pashto explaining the parliament structure under the new constitution. In addition, USAID provides electoral administration and computer training to IEC (International Electoral Commission) Commissioners."

"A new plan in Herat to teach women to drive and give them licenses is at once a symbol of the official rights women continue to win in Afghanistan and a reminder of the difficulties they still confront in exercising those freedoms...

"Now, for the first time in memory, shops in Herat are hiring women to sell their wares. Women's fitness clubs are popping up along the city's leafy avenues. And ever more women are trading their burqas, the head-to-toe garment worn in public, for an Iranian-style shawl, or chador, which covers the hair and body but not the face."

"The new governor sounds like a typical politician, promising paved roads, electricity, jobs and water, just like the last governor.

"But the new governor of Bamiyan is anything but ordinary. Habiba Sorabi is a woman, the first female provincial governor in Afghanistan's tortured history. Her appointment by the president marks a step forward for Afghan women, oppressed even before the Taliban forced them to stop working and beat them for showing skin.

" 'Thank God a thousand times,' said Massoma, a woman of about 40, who like many Afghans does not have a last name, as she sat near an unpaved road in Bamiyan, hoping that someone would give her a ride. 'Women are more powerful than men in this country,' added her daughter, Marzia, 22. 'If God wills it, they'll do better things'."

"As the new governor of Bamian province in central Afghanistan, Habiba Sorabi has a clear idea of what she hopes to accomplish. She wants to build roads, open schools and supply electricity to residents of the province, located about 200 kilometres west of Kabul. She also hopes to lure visitors to this poor, war-ravaged region, despite the fact that its most famous tourist attractions - two huge, 1,600-year-old stone Buddhas - were destroyed by the Taleban in 2001.

"Sorabi has already gone a long way toward accomplishing one of her primary goals - raising the status of women in society - simply by being appointed the first female governor in the country in March."

"She can't leave the house without an all-covering blue burqa, many of her relatives are scandalised, but Shahida Hussain is preparing to stand for parliament anyway.

"The 50-year-old women's rights activist who lives in the Taleban spiritual heartland of Afghanistan is one of at least two women in the southern city of Kandahar who are preparing to stand for elections in Afghanistan's parliamentary polls on September 18."

"Attia Ali had a brother in Denmark, a sister in the Netherlands and a well-paid job in Pakistan. It is a tribute to the enduring draw and improving prospects of Afghanistan that she has quit her job and is now headed back to her homeland...

"Now many are like Ali - Afghans who are well-established in Pakistan and could easily be expected to consider it home. They are giving up their present occupations but are confident that the future lies in re-establishing themselves in an Afghanistan that is finally emerging from decades of war."

"In order to qualify for that assistance returnees need to have access to a piece of land. Then UNHCR provides them with building materials and the assistance is given in a staggered way. Monitoring teams from the agency and implementing partners go and see how work is progressing. If they build the walls then they get the window frames and so on.

" 'At the end of the process before the building is officially handed over to the beneficiary they get a small cash grant, around US $50 to cover some of their labour costs. Roughly speaking, the cost of our assistance depending on the area and materials used, is about $650. And the overall cost of a house depending on the area and materials is approximately $1,200,' [a spokesman for UNHCR in Afghanistan, Tim] Irwin explained.

"Since the UNHCR shelter programme began in 2002, some 110,000 shelters have been constructed across the country. In 2004, the UN agency provided around 27,500 shelters and the plans for 2005 is to slightly reduce that. The average returnee family has about six to seven members, suggesting that roughly 715,000 returnees benefited from the shelter since 2002, including an estimated 180,000 returnees in 2004."

"As a new school year begins, a record number of children are enrolled in the country's schools. But national and international officials know that more needs to be done, especially when it comes to providing educational opportunities for girls.

"The education ministry, with help from the United Nations children's fund UNICEF, has begun a campaign to enroll an extra 500,000 girls in schools across the country, particularly in rural districts.

"Because many remote areas lack school buildings, the programme will pay for mosques and homes to be fitted out as classrooms. About 75,000 girls are already studying in such temporary schools.

"The main obstacle is not a lack of facilities, however. Authorities are hoping to overcome years of prejudice by showing parents and village leaders the benefits of educating girls as well as boys."

"The former schoolteacher and librarian unveiled a series of multi-million dollar US-funded projects to promote women's learning, saying they would help secure the war-scarred nation's path to democracy...

"She announced a 17.7-million-dollar grant for a new American University of Afghanistan in Kabul, 3.5 million dollars for the international elementary school of Afghanistan and five million dollars for a women's teacher training institute."

"When first lady Laura Bush, on her visit to Kabul March 30, announced that 'The United States is supporting the establishment of the American University of Afghanistan with a multi-year commitment of more than 15 million dollars,' it was one more step in the fulfillment of Sharief Fayez's dream. Fayez was Afghanistan's minister of Higher Education until December 2004. Born in Afghanistan and educated in the United States, he dreamed of an institute in his homeland along the lines of the American Universities in Beirut and Cairo - a private institution with lectures and textbooks in English that would train new generations of Afghan professionals and leaders."

"Meet Farzana. She's the principal of Sha Shaheed School, a school for girls who missed years of their education during the five years of the Taliban's rule. The school is one of nine supported by CARE's Out of School Girls Project that provides fast-track education for girls by teaching two years in one.

"During the Taliban years, Farzana and her family fled to Pakistan, and she was able to work. However, after September 11th, her family moved back to Kabul and Farzana was able to keep working. She's 28 years old and single, which is unusual for a woman her age in Afghanistan, and lives with her father. While her brothers and sisters are all married, she tells us that her father is open minded and encourages her to pursue her career.

"The Sha Shaheed School teaches 360 girls who come in six days a week, either for the morning or afternoon, for their classes. Most of the girls are between 10-14 years old and were in school before Taliban, but had to stop going to school for five years when the Taliban didn't allow girls to be educated. These girls are now much older that the kids in their grade and CARE aims to provide a fast-track education so they can rejoin the school system at the appropriate age."

"The Cisco Networking Academies Program (CNAP) is a $4 million alliance to train Afghans to install and maintain modern computer networks and related information technology. The alliance consists of Cisco Systems, Inc., USAID, United Nations Development Program, and the Ministry of Women's Affairs. Currently, CNAP operates three academies in Kabul, with approximately 400 students, including 170 women. CNAP is launching its second phase and plans to:

"- Expand from its Kabul base to more cities nationwide, and increase enrollment to more than 1,000 over the next two years;

"- Expand the training content beyond Cisco to include new technology partners such as Hewlett-Packard, Sun Microsystems, Panduit and others;

"- Expand to reach high priority groups such as women, demobilized combatants and workers from privatized state enterprises;

"- Build career prospects for trainees through job search training and employer job fairs; and

"- Raise revenue and assure sustainability though fee-based training for outside professionals.

"Although the CNAP alliance forms the foundation of USAID's Information and Communications Technologies program, other related elements include: strengthening the technical capacity of the Government of Afghanistan's Ministries, increasing access to telecommunication and information services of rural Afghans, and enhancing access to information and micro-finance support for small businesses."

"The Norwegian Red Cross Society (Norcross) has undertaken to re-create an ambulance service in the city, having recently concluded a USD 1.2 million reconstruction of the Wazir Akbar Khan Hospital, the only orthopaedic referral hospital in Afghanistan.

"The Kabul Ambulance Service, the city's only functioning ambulance service, has been established as a free-of-charge service for the whole population.

"A staff of 103, including a driver and nurse for each of the Service's 13 ambulances have been trained to operate from one base station and four sub-stations in Kabul. Staff are trained in two basic courses dealing with medical emergencies and special driver training, and they then receive annual refresher courses...

"Six of the ambulance service staff are female and, of these, two are ambulance nurses working at the call centre."

"With Afghanistan facing a high prevalence of iodine deficiency disorders, including mental retardation, physical stunting and goitre, a new campaign to be launched on Tuesday 19 April will encourage Afghan households to increase their consumption of iodised salt...

"The new campaign, led by the Ministry of Public Health with the support of UNICEF, builds upon a successful increase in the production of iodised salt following the establishment of ten iodised salt plants in Afghanistan since 2003. These plants now have the capacity to meet the population's requirement of iodised salt; the new information campaign aims to increase demand from households."

"Most patients want their scars removed, all evidence of burns, skin diseases and even gunshot wounds erased. But others, hiding beneath their burqas, want nose jobs.

"Cosmetic surgery has arrived in Kabul, in the form of the tiny Hamkar Surgical Clinic, across the street from the bombed-out Cinema Theatre building, in need of its own face-lift. In this clinic, tucked away at the top of a dark stairway, people can pay for tummy tucks, although no one has been brave enough yet to try. Women will be able to buy larger breasts, although only one woman has expressed interest so far.

" 'It's peaceful now in Afghanistan,' nurse Mohammad Fazel said. 'People can get rid of their wrinkles. They can get rid of their bad figures.'

"Most Afghans are still too busy surviving to worry too much about appearance. But the existence of such a clinic--which charges as little as $100 for a nose job--shows how much Kabul, at least, has changed since the fall of the Taliban in late 2001."

"A recently released report from Altai Consulting finds that local independent radio stations in Afghanistan are very popular in their coverage areas; listenership was estimated at 79 per cent, and 29 per cent of the respondents have called or sent a letter to a station. The stations were established by Internews in Afghanistan under a grant from the US Agency for International Development (USAID).

"The report, which was based on a six-month project commissioned by USAID/OTI and Internews, evaluates the interaction between new and traditional sources of information in Afghan communities, and assesses 16 of the 29 local radio stations established by Internews since 2003...

"Most of the Afghans surveyed are intensive media users and radio in particular is listened to widely by women and children, as well as men. In fact, media are a primary source of education for women."

"The two men spend several minutes debating which came first, the chicken or the egg. They argue over whether people dream in color.

"This hardly seems like the most controversial TV show in Afghanistan. But in between the polite chitchat, these men - the Afghan version of MTV VJs - play music videos, which sometimes feature heaving bosoms, dancing women and sexually suggestive lyrics. Such videos have turned the TV show 'Hop' into one of the most popular programs on the Afghan capital's most popular new TV station, Tolo TV. They also have drawn the ire of the country's clerics and the scrutiny of the government...

"Tolo TV, which premiered in October, features women as VJs on 'Hop' and as commentators on other programs. At some point, the women will take off their head scarves - shocking in a country where women still cover their hair with scarves or wear burqas, which cover everything, even a woman's eyes...

"On Tolo, people Rollerblade and fly kites at a New Year's celebration. Men and women talk to each other, even laugh together. Jennifer Lopez videos are shown frequently, and commercials tout the benefits of chicken bullion and dandruff shampoo. In many ways, the station shows a vision of Kabul not as it necessarily is, but as many young people would like it to be."

"An Afghan girl whose father and two sisters were killed in a 1998 bombing attack in Kabul will have her memoir published after winning a contest co-sponsored by 'Good Morning America' and Simon & Schuster.

"Farah Ahmedi's 'The Story of My Life' was released Friday with a first printing of more than 175,000 copies. Ahmedi, whose victory was announced on "Good Morning America," was to appear Friday night on ABC-TV's '20-20' and then go on a 10-city tour.

"Now 17 and a resident of Carol Streams, Illinois, Ahmedi will also receive $10,000... She and her mother fled Afghanistan for Pakistan, where they lived in dire conditions. They were admitted to the United States in 2002.

" 'The contest was launched last fall on "Good Morning America," with contestants asked to submit 600-word essays about their lives. A panel of judges that included authors Mary Karr and Mary Higgins Clark narrowed nearly 6,000 submissions down to three finalists, 'based on quality and persuasiveness of the entrant's story and overall potential of this life story for both on-air and book appeal'."

" 'Looking at the audience, I see that you are all Kandaharis,' the singer said into the microphone as he surveyed a sea of heads sporting the sparkly caps and long-tailed turbans common to that southern city. 'But my Pashto is not strong, so I hope you will enjoy our music in Dari.'

"The tourists crowded into the Ahmadi Supermarket and Restaurant applauded encouragingly.

"This northern city might seem an odd destination for travelers from Kandahar, which, after all, is the ethnic Pashtun stronghold where the repressive Taliban movement originated. Mazar-e Sharif, a city dominated by ethnic Uzbeks and Tajiks, was one of the last holdouts against the Taliban. During the violent struggle for control of the city, which the Taliban held from 1998 to 2001, members of both sides engaged in massacres of the other.

"But the Taliban is gone now. And when it comes to ringing in the Persian New Year in Afghanistan, even people from Kandahar will admit that Mazar-e Sharif has no equal. 'This is the place to celebrate, so of course I wanted to come,' said Abdul Rezek, 28, an auto parts salesman who had taken the 18-hour bus ride from Kandahar with 12 of his friends several days earlier. 'Definitely people here know where I am from,' he added. 'But they say, "You are as a guest here. We welcome you".'

"It has been a recurring theme of this year's festivities in Mazar-e Sharif."

"A lively concert - perhaps the first of its kind following the fall of the Taliban regime which banned music in Afghanistan - was held in this northern city of Kunduz, drawing hundreds of youths.

"About 1000 men and women, who participated in the event billed as rare - applauded the young local singer, Dawud Yaqubi, and the allegories presented by a female team of Mediothek office, which organized the festival.

"The 25-years-old singer felt elated over giving the concert. 'I left home during the Taliban government just because they barred me from singing; but I feel lucky to be with you once again,' he [said]."

"It's midnight, long past bedtime for most children. But in a poor, war-ravaged neighborhood of Kabul, more than 300 men are gathered at a wedding party to listen to the singing of Mirwais Najrabi, a pale, chestnut-haired 13-year-old. He performs in an open courtyard, under the night sky, to an audience that has endured so much suffering and grief over years of oppression, war and mayhem. Yet for this brief, transcendent moment, their burden is lifted by the exquisite purity of the boy's voice...

"Boy vocalists, long a part of Afghan tradition, were silenced from 1996-2001 by the puritanical Taliban regime, which regarded song as un-Islamic, and had many musicians arrested and beaten. Now, three years after the Taliban defeat, singers are wandering back from exile in Europe and the U.S. to a tumultuous welcome, and Kabul's virtuosos have unearthed the instruments they buried in their gardens. Songs blast from Kabul shops, and more than a dozen radio stations flourish around the country. Mirwais, one of the first to sing in public after the Taliban's ouster, is at the vanguard of this revival. Despite his youth, he recognizes the enormity of the change. In the old days, he says, 'If the Taliban caught me, they would have shaved my head. And only Allah knows what other punishments I would have faced'."

"Apparently inspired by fashions they see in films from Bollywood as well as Hollywood, young people in the Afghan capital Kabul are shedding traditional clothes for outfits that would have been unthinkable during the five years of Taleban rule that ended in 2001. 'I watch Indian films for the clothes, because Indian actresses wear fascinating Punjabi costumes,' Belqis, 33.

"While women clad in blue burkas are still a common sight on the streets of Kabul, Belqis' s only concession to traditional clothing is a headscarf. She told IWPR that she had two Indian saris at home and was delighted to be able to make her own fashion choices without harassment.

"Both men and women seem anxious to keep up with the latest fashions. For barbers, hair stylists and clothes sellers, business has never been better. Baseball caps, jeans and denim jackets can be seen everywhere in the capital, especially around schools when classes get out.

" 'I'll follow fashion until I get over my resentment of the Taleban era,' said Jamaluddin, 25. Sporting sunglasses and a black sleeveless shirt, with his hair parted down the middle, he said he took his sartorial inspiration from Indian film star Tere-Naam after watching one of his movies."

"Beneath a blue burqa which glides through the shadow of the Hazrat Ali shrine, a pair of feet with delicately painted nails makes its way towards the gardens where some of Mazar-i-Sharif's young women meet their lovers in secret.

"The northern city's young men openly discuss this educated minority of urban women, who discreetly challenge Afghan traditions that fathers must choose the men their daughters marry and that brides cannot see their husbands in advance.

" 'Today, girls can meet boys in government offices, in aid agencies, non-governmental organisations, at university,' explains Aimal, a 24-year-old dressed in jeans and a western shirt who works for the United Nations in Mazar.

"Virtually impossible under the ultra-Islamic Taliban, these meetings are a prelude to 'love marriages', still an extremely rare phenomenon in Afghanistan but becoming increasingly popular in towns.

" 'People who make love marriages are educated people, people who have a job, which is still rare in Afghanistan today,' adds Aimal. 'Only educated people can meet other young people and have a boyfriend or a girlfriend before getting married,' says Hamidullah, a 25-year-old journalist sitting at a table full of men at a restaurant in central Mazar."

"The Deh Mazang area of Kabul was once one of the areas of the city which were most heavily bombarded from gun positions on the hill in front. On Sunday it rang to the sounds of snooker balls being shot across the snooker tables, playing host to a snooker competition.

"The area which now has the Ariana snooker club saw 80 players from eight different teams from all over Kabul participating in the competition in order to select the best team in the city, Ustad Aziz, the director of the snooker federation said."

" 'When I saw hoardings on the streets which showed elders as well as youth talking happily on mobile phones, I was inspired to buy a mobile' 70-year old Haji Nasrullah said. The white-haired Nasrullah, dressed in a turban and traditional Afghan clothes was buying a Nokia mobile phone from a shop in the city.

"Mobile phone services, Alkozai tea, Sadre-Sihat shampoo are amongst the goods which are advertising on TV in a bid to attract customers. At the gate of Kabul airport the first thing that catches the eye are the big colorful advertising banners with images of men and women laughing. In the crowded streets of Kabul city and some provinces as well, companies importing goods make their products known with interesting pictures and sights.

"Advertising companies say that though they could not use pictures of women earlier they are now able to do so.

"Advertising is a nascent phenomenon in Afghanistan. It has not had the chance to develop because of the long years of war. Afghanistan had no commercial or independent radio and TV before the war. Even newspapers were not allowed to publish any private or commercial advertisement. Only government advertisements were carried by the official electronic media. Now Afghanistan's new private radio and TV stations are selling time for advertisements.

"But currently there are some private radios, TVs and newspapers which sell time for advertisements. There is no accurate data on the advertising market in Afghanistan but some commercial advertising agencies believe that it has grown rapidly in a short period."

"If the Pentagon started to look for a rest-and-recuperation spot for its troops inside Afghanistan, it could do far worse than this large city near the Iranian border.

" 'There are two words I would use to describe Herat,' said Sgt. 1st Class David Stansberry, serving his second tour in country. 'Prosperity and cultural.'

"In other words, Herat doesn't look like most of Afghanistan. It has modern buildings, paved streets and basic infrastructure. Its people, while approximating the cultural mix that makes up the country, seem a little different as well.

" 'The people seem to be more interested in developing their economy than shooting bullets at each other,' said Maj. Tim Butts, the Task Force Longhorn engineer. 'It's a very rich province, probably the richest in country.'

"Much of Herat's current success can be attributed to its geography. It's located in a relatively flat area that sits on trade routes to Iran and Turkmenistan."

"American businesses, especially American businesswomen, are working closely with the U.S. government to promote the interests of Afghan women, Under Secretary of State for Global Affairs Paula Dobriansky says.

"Briefing reporters in Washington April 4 on the sixth meeting of the U.S.-Afghan Women's Council that took place in Kabul March 29-31, Dobriansky, who co-chairs the council with the Afghan Ministers of Women's Affairs and Foreign Affairs, said the private sector provides a dimension of assistance to Afghan women that the public sector does not. 'Many of the government projects are large-scale and they might be more impersonal, like road building, but many of the projects that involve the private sector build ties in terms of personal relationships,' Dobriansky said.

"The under secretary said that, for instance, one of the U.S. council members arranged for 15 Afghan businesswomen to pursue a mini-MBA program at the Thunderbird School of International Management in Arizona, one of the highest rated international business schools in the United States. The 15 Afghan businesswomen will be mentored during the next two years as they implement their business plans, which involve a wide range of projects, such as promoting tourism, targeting the consumer sector and partnering with hotels...

"One of the most innovative ideas for entrepreneurship involves helping young artists at an 'incredible school' for orphans and abandoned children in Asiana, a school in Kabul, Afghanistan, to sell their paintings...

"Dobriansky said other private-public sector projects involve an initiative to help Afghan women weave carpets and ship them to the United States for sale; a $40,000 grant from Freddie Mac, the Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation, for micro-enterprise loans for Afghan women; assistance from the Loma Linda Hospital in California to a hospital in Kabul; and funding from AOL-Time Warner company for a women's resource center in Parwan Province. The under secretary said she expects other companies to fund more women's resource centers in Afghanistan.

"President Bush's wife, Laura, joined the U.S.-Afghan Women's Council at the Women's Teacher Training Institute in Kabul. Laura Bush, who was a librarian and works to promote literacy as first lady, has been personally involved with the creation of the institute since its inception. 'The goal of this institute is to train teachers who will be dispatched out to rural areas and will target young boys and girls who may not have as many benefits as do those in urban areas,' Dobriansky said...

"While at the Women's Teacher Training Institute, the first lady announced that the United States will contribute $17.7 million for the construction of an American University in Kabul and $3.5 million for an international school in Afghanistan running from kindergarten through 12th grade, Dobriansky said.

"Dobriansky said microenterprise is a key area in terms of providing loans for communities and for different types of economic projects. One of the projects that is expected to have a major beneficial impact on impoverished Afghan women is the Afghan Conservation Corps."

"Sara Rahmani, businesswoman, picks a brown burqa-style dress from the rack, and holding it in front of her face, shows with a broad smile how she refashioned it for post-Taliban Afghanistan.

"The all-covering shroud that was mandatory under the hard-line regime has become a flowing gown, with head uncovered and the eye-level gauze dropped to the chest -- though not too low. It's on sale now for $30 (U.S.) at her Kabul store.

"The 36-year old former refugee is among the growing number of Afghan women going into business, capitalizing on new opportunities in a thriving, yet still male-dominated economy three years after the fall of the Islamist government."

"Looking around Kabul after the war, Sediqi saw many women entering traditionally female lines of work. She herself had worked from home as a tailor under the Taliban rule and relied on her brother to sell her goods. But when the Taliban fell, she said, many women began to set up tailoring shops, and the competition was too stiff.

"So she decided to defy conventional notions about what is appropriate work for women. She saw that after years of war, much of Afghanistan's infrastructure and many of its buildings were in desperate need of repair. Being an enterprising businesswoman, she launched herself into Afghanistan's newest growth industry: construction."

"Industrial parks support economic growth in Afghanistan by serving as a mechanism for organizing and concentrating scarce public infrastructure resources. This encourages private investor interest, and generates employment opportunities. There are three industrial parks under various stages of construction in Afghanistan:

"- Kabul: Design and contracting stage complete. Though delayed by the severe weather, construction is underway. Thirty-four lots have been sold. Overall, about 65% complete.

"- Kandahar: Land preparation, sidewalks, sewage, and drainage designs are complete. Electricity and water supply designs are nearing completion. Overall, about 25% complete.

"- Mazar-e Sharif: Land preparation, roads, and sidewalk designs complete. Designs for water supply, sewage, electricity, and communication are underway. Overall, about 10% complete."

"The Asian Development Bank (ADB) will help to improve telecommunications in Afghanistan through a US$35 million loan signed Wednesday to finance the nationwide expansion and upgrading of the country's leading cellular network. According to an ADB statement, the project will use a global system for mobile communications (GSM), cellular, satellite, and radio wave transmission technologies to extend the coverage of Roshan, a private limited liability company that provides cellular telephone, public call office, international gateway, and Internet services in Afghanistan.

"The project will help to expand Roshan's coverage towards its ultimate goal of countrywide coverage and will help fund the deployment of public call offices which extend the reach of telecoms to the less affluent and more remote users.

"After 23 years of conflict, Afghanistan is left with no functioning national fixed line telecommunications service, a barely functioning postal service, and poor roads. Cellular networks are still embryonic and require significant additional investment, particularly if they are to reach beyond the major cities. According to the ADB statement, pent-up demand for telephony services has been demonstrated by subscriber numbers significantly exceeding original projections."

"The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday granted an 80 million dollar loan for war-torn Afghanistan to improve a key part of the country's infrastructure.

"This project will reconstruct the last unpaved section of the national primary ring road, spanning 210 kilometres from Andkhoy to Qaisar in northern Faryab province, according to Afghan Finance Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Ahady.

"The project will be an important link in the government's commitment to completing the 2,700 kilometre Afghanistan ring road as quickly as possible, Ahady said."

"Construction of a road building project from Said Karam district in the eastern province of Paktia to the Afghan-Pakistan border was inaugurated on Wednesday, the head of the department of information and culture of Paktia told Pajhwok Afghan News.

"The official, Deen Mohammed Darwish, said the 70.3 km-long road would connect Gardez to the Dand Patan district at a cost of $1.67 million funded by the World Bank. The 9 meter-wide road will be constructed by an Afghan-Korean construction company in six months. The road will be reinforced by 3,300 meters of wall as protection against floods. Paktia governor Hakim Taniwal formally inaugurated the project on Wednesday.

"The road will link four districts Sayed Karam, Ahmed Khel, Samkani and Dand Patan districts of Paktiya province Ghulam Nabi Farahi, an official of the commerce ministry said 'it is a great step for trade and investment for Afghanistan.' This is a transit road and will help to import goods from Pakistan to Afghanistan and from Afghanistan to Central Asia."

"Afghanistan won support from the World Bank and Britain on Tuesday in its bid to have a bigger slice of the billions of dollars of aid money that flow into the country channelled through its own budget...

"Afghan President Hamid Karzai has argued that large amounts of aid are wasted due to inefficiency or corruption among non-government organisations stepping outside their role as providers of humanitarian and development aid...

"A World Bank representative backed Karzai's request for greater control of the purse strings, not least to enable Afghan firms to become more involved in reconstruction."

"USAID is enhancing food security and income for the rural population through its Rebuilding Afghanistan's Agricultural Markets Program (RAMP). The project's objectives are to increase agricultural output and productivity as well as boost incomes by linking producers and markets. The program supports the extension of technologies (new crop varieties, fertilizers, crop management and protection, equipment and machinery) through extensive field demonstrations, information dissemination, and building private sector capacity.

"RAMP has made significant strides this reporting period and each achievement serves to enhance the impact of the others. Farmer training programs, including crop demonstrations, field days, and training by extension agents, build rural capacity and enhance productivity and quality of produce. Since March 13, USAID has trained 10,128 farmers for a total of 606,364 farmers since July 2003. Rehabilitating rural roads ensures that farmers can get their produce to market. In the past two weeks, twelve km of farm-to-market roads were paved, bringing the total to 312 km. Village-based seed enterprises (VBSE) are farmer-led seed production and marketing units that help farmers get rapid access to quality seed of improved crop varieties. To date, there are 15 operational VBSEs that have produced 813 tons of improved seed. To facilitate applications of the new technologies, RAMP repairs irrigation structures: In the past two weeks, 7 km of canals were repaired in the Nangarhar Valley and, in Helmand, 8 km of the Boghra canal were fixed. Together, these repairs have improved irrigation for 400 hectares in the two provinces."

"The World Food Program (WFP) have pledged 600 metric tons of food stuff worth US$158 million to the Afghan people who can't afford food, for the year 2005...

"Abad Ullah Abadi, the spokesman for the WFP... said the program would donate food in exchange for work and training people. He said in the last few months, 367,000 Afghans have taken advantage of this assistance.

"In addition the WFP is committed to 178 other projects, aimed at making Afghan people self-sufficient in farming, rebuilding streets, cleaning of canals, carpentry and tailoring."

"Outreach employees teamed up to help see women and children through the grueling Afghanistan winter with warm clothing donations. Outreach staff collected and sent a total of 14 boxes full of warm coats, gloves, hats, scarves, sweaters, boots, long johns and blankets to Afghanistan after receiving a request from a World Campus student living and working near the Uzbekistan border in Mazar-e-Sharif."

"Members of the 49th Field Regiment were busy during lunch hour Monday at the Sault Armoury loading some precious cargo for an important trip halfway around the world. Boxes full of clothing and pencils are on their way to Afghanistan thanks to the generosity of a wide range of Sooites.

"The pencils are part of the Zonta Club's 'A Million Pencils for Afghanistan' project. The organization of business and professional women help out various causes. Lucy Holden, a grade 12 student from Mount St. Joseph College, spearheaded a clothing drive campaign to help Afghan children after she received an email from her father who is serving with the Canadian Forces in the war ravaged country."

"Sally Goodrich, whose son died in the Sept. 11 attacks, kept a grip on her grief as she surveyed the foundations of the Afghan school being built with money she raised in the United States.

"But the 59-year-old, who lost her son in the second plane to hit the World Trade Center, has been overwhelmed more than once as she surveyed the striking landscape of mountains and plains where al-Qaida honed its plot.

" 'How could it possibly have come from a place of such reverence and tranquility?' she told The Associated Press in the Afghan capital this week, the thought bringing fresh tears and a determined smile."

"A frail 16-month-old boy diagnosed with severe cardiac problems at a refugee camp near Kabul began his return trip home... - surgically repaired and chubby-cheeked.

"The long journey for Qudrat Wardak began in September, when an Indiana National Guard doctor examined him at the camp near the Afghan capital and found numerous heart defects - the worst being the reversal of the heart's main blood vessels that stunted the baby's growth.

"He weighed about as much as a typical 5-month-old when he arrived in the United States in late February for surgery. 'He couldn't talk, he couldn't play, he couldn't eat or do anything,' Qudrat's father, Hakimgul Wardak, said as the boy and his father prepared to leave Indianapolis International Airport. He spoke through an interpreter.

"Hakimgul Wardak said his wife won't recognize her little boy. 'She will be so amazed and she's probably not going to be able to take her eyes off Qudrat,' he said."

"The US-led coalition forces revealed on Monday they had successfully completed 16,000 projects in different Afghan areas since 2001 as part of the reconstruction effort.

"Director of Civil-Military Operations Col. Guy Sands told journalists at a news conference here that in 2004 alone, $60 million had been spent on a string of projects in different provinces through provincial reconstruction teams.

"Col. Guy Sands explained the projects initiated after the fall of the Taliban government covered the reconstruction of schools, health clinics and sanitation plans in different provinces.

"According to the spokesperson for the coalition forces, at the moment 20 provincial reconstruction teams were busy trying to rebuild Afghanistan. Of these teams, 14 are led by the coalition and the rest by the peacekeeping forces."

"Rows of shoes stand at attention next to neat stacks of T-shirts and sweaters folded dress-right-dress. These items have all passed Sgt. Rena Brownridge's inspection.

"Brownridge, with the Gardez provincial reconstruction team's Civil Affairs Team Alpha, is in charge of sorting all of the boxes of humanitarian aid sent to the PRT. 'I saw all the boxes just kind of sitting around and that was kind of it,' she said. 'I rolled up my sleeves and got busy.'

"Surrounded by mountains of shoes, clothing and toys, Brownridge methodically works her way through the piles, sorting items by size, color and even season. 'It's amazing some of the stuff we get. A lot of it is brand new or close to it,' she said, smiling as she held a tiny red corduroy jumper at eye level. 'A lot of the children here don't get toys. They're like little adults. It's hard for them to be children when they're already out working, supporting their families. Even if it's just a Beanie Baby or a box of crayons, I think it gives them a piece of their childhood back.'

"After sorting and re-boxing the items, Brownridge and her team take them to area villages. 'We don't just go out and drop off boxes. We physically go out and give it to the people ourselves because we want to make sure that it actually gets to them,' she said. 'We also want to put a human face on our presence here. Some of these people have never seen an American soldier up close and they don't know what to expect... It's important that we show them that we're people too and we're here to help them, no strings attached'."

"Airpower's 'global reach' took on a whole new meaning March 29 when 50-plus Airmen traveled to two villages a few miles outside Bagram to equip local Afghan children with supplies for their future.

"Men and women of the 455th Air Expeditionary Wing delivered bags filled with school supplies to about 400 children from Ja Farkel and Langi Khail, two villages within Afghanistan's Parwan Province.

"In addition, each child received his or her own toy, said Senior Master Sgt. Tim Bolon, the 455th Expeditionary Mission Support Group first sergeant. 'We also dropped off about 40 large bags of men's, women's and children's clothing at each location - all donated by our troops here and their support system back home'."

"Children suffering from difficult-to-treat medical conditions in rural Afghanistan may have no better friend than the Marines of 'America's Battalion.' Over the course of their deployment to Afghanistan, the Marines and Navy Corpsmen of 3rd Battalion, 3rd Marines, have come to the aid of several local children who otherwise were not receiving treatment for very serious injuries. One such local teenager named Syed Ullah, recently received a prosthetic eye after Marines on patrol in Nagalam discovered his wounds."

"Task Force Victory Surgeon Cell held a cooperative medical assistance mission for Afghan livestock here March 22 - 24. Taking care of 3,256 animals is a big step in raising the health level of the Afghan people, said head veterinarian Dr. (Lt. Col.) Mark Martinez.

"Livestock in Afghanistan can be infected with worms if un-vaccinated. When eaten, the meat from these animals can pass the parasites to humans, said Dr. (Lt. Col.) Mike Lennon, an operations officer for the TFV Surgeon Cell. 'Livestock is the largest industry in Afghanistan,' he said. 'Over 80 percent of families make a living from their livestock'."

"American and Coalition forces celebrated International Women's History Month by holding a Women's Bazaar and Women's Day Commemoration honoring women from all over the world March 25 and 26.

"Women began serving in the U.S. Armed Forces in 1901 by enlisting in the Army Nurse Corps. In 1948 women were allowed permanent status in all the armed services. Throughout the years, women in the military have come a long way. Women are now pilots, mechanics, command sergeants major and officers. Currently, more than 350,000 women comprise approximately 15 percent of the active duty, reserve and guard units of the U.S. Armed Forces.

"In honor of International Women's History Month, a women's bazaar for Afghan women was organized by Sgt. Jamila Hodges, TSA Force Unit. 'This is our first ever women's bazaar. The women were scared to participate due to threats and rumors circulating throughout their villages,' said Hodges. 'But change is a focus, and we must be patient.'

"Celebrating International Women's History Month is very important in Afghanistan. 'The women of Afghanistan need to see that American Soldiers are trying to create change. When we tell them and then show them (how to change), it is easier for them to mimic our actions. If we take baby steps, it will change to bigger steps, which leads to improvement,' said Hodges.

"Zuhra Hussine, a vendor at the bazaar, had a smile on her face as she completed a sale. 'I will go back to my village and let them know the business here is good and we are so happy. The people here are so good to us,' said Hussine."

"Italian soldiers of Italfor 10 contingent in Iraq distributed four tons of humanitarian aids (clothes, food, toys) in Kabul to 800 children of the greatest orphanage of the country, Tahai Maskan, in western suburbs of Kabul. A note reads that it was the occasion for a direct meeting between militaries and children. 'The example of civilisation and solidarity shown by the Italian soldiers is a tangible sign of their action and presence aimed at stabilising our country after a devastating 10-years-long war' the orphanage director, Soraya Abdullah Hakim, said."

"Much improvement in the southeastern part of the country can be attributed to concerted efforts among coalition and Iraqi forces to improve conditions as construction progresses along the Ring Road, between Kabul, Kandahar and Herat. The U.S. Agency for International Development is providing $21 million to complete the road. Construction is being carried out by U.S. Army National Guard engineers and is about one-third complete...

"A fledgling Afghan highway patrol is making inroads in security as well... The force has begun setting up checkpoints along the Ring Road and has made some drug busts...

"Part of the coalition's strategy for decreasing Taliban influence in these areas is to move firebases out into the communities. U.S. Army Special Forces A teams operating out of these firebases are 'changing the conditions' in Taliban strongholds... Several of these SF soldiers, many sporting full beards and relatively long hair, attended today's briefing. In time, coalition officials hope to hand over these firebases to Afghan National Army forces."

"The Afghan National Army is getting a new look over the next few months. As a result of a recent equipment donation, they will appear a little less Soviet and a little more like their Coalition partners.

"The ANA recently took delivery of 10 M113A2 armored personnel carriers from the United States at Camp Pol-e-Charkhi, on the outskirts of Kabul. This was the first shipment of vehicles with more to follow."

"On a hot and exhausting day, there's nothing better than a cool drink of water. For soldiers of the Afghan National Army, water is not only nice, it's a necessity. But in a difficult environment such as that found here, understanding and applying appropriate field sanitation measures can mean the difference between helping or hurting a unit's combat effectiveness.

"On April 14, U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Terrill Jones, the Office of Military Cooperation-Afghanistan's food service adviser to the ANA, conducted a comprehensive field-sanitation training class for the 2nd Kandak (Battalion), 1st Brigade of the 203rd Corps, located in the country's Ghazni Province."

"The six Afghan army officers have fought the Soviets, the Taliban, maybe even each other. This week, the men, a lieutenant colonel and five captains, are learning a different way to fight - the American way.

"Their thick black hair, moustaches - two sported beards - and chiseled faces suggested age and combat experience well beyond the clean-shaven Marine Corps officers teaching them yesterday about the intricacies of the M82 sniper rifle.

"The soldiers are part of a Marine Corps pilot program to give Afghan military officers in the middle ranks - company and battalion officers - a taste of American military leadership and training to take back to the troops of the fledgling Afghan National Army, said Lt. Col. Keith Jensen, a Marine officer escorting the Afghans.

"They have flown halfway around the world to tour Marines bases here, Camp Lejeune, N.C., and Parris Island, S.C. Back in Afghanistan, Marines are training two battalions, about 600 men each. U.S. Army advisors are training more than a dozen other battalions."

"By day Malalai Badahari wears dark glasses, combat fatigues and wields an AK-47. But at dusk the diminutive counter-narcotics cop slips her veil back on her head and goes back to her home life, where all her neighbours think she is a teacher.

"In the mud-brick street in Kabul where she lives with her husband, father-in-law and her five sons, revealing what she does for a living could mean death as the streets of the Afghan capital are crawling with gangsters and warlords linked to the country's booming drugs trade."

"Abdul Khaleq Watengul stopped growing poppies this year. He now prunes olive trees for $3 a day.

"The nearby opium market, once thriving, is a dusty trail of boarded-up stores and locked doors. Hundreds of men sit nearby, with nothing to do but complain about their unemployment. In Jalalabad, the capital of Nangarhar province, people buy poppy seeds only to feed birds or to use in cookies.

"The opium poppy trade has fallen on hard times in Nangarhar, once one of the top producers in Afghanistan."

"Rivers flooding, US soldiers at the border and corrupt militias losing their jobs and weapons - life as a drug smuggler in southern Afghanistan isn't what it used to be for Ahmed Jan.

"Getting convoys of 60 or 70 off-road vehicles, each filled with a ton of dry opium resin, through a day's drive from southern Kandahar city to the border with Iran has become complicated in recent months... 'It is much more difficult to get stuff out of the country so it's only a few secret routes that are running, like rivers of drugs,' says Jan, a rotund man in his 40s using a pseudonym.

"His problems are an indication that Afghanistan's fight against narcotics is paying off."