Implementation of 165 projects in the capital over the past year by the municipality/Kabul is being renovated
Afghan Voice Agency (AVA) Kabul: Nematullah Barakzai, spokesman for the Kabul municipality, said in an interview with AVA that in 1403 AH, about 165 projects worth 6.4 billion Afghanis were implemented, including 89 projects related to road construction, and work on most of the projects is ongoing.
The spokesperson for Kabul Municipality also shared the annual performance report of this institution in detail with Afghan Voice News Agency, and also provided information on the construction of urban infrastructure, urban services, urban planning and development, cultural and social affairs, good governance, revenue affairs.
According to this report, during one year from (Asad 1402 to 1403) from its internal budget, Kabul Municipality has developed and constructed a total of (125.87) kilometers of public and secondary roads with widths ranging from 4 to 60 meters, in the form of asphalt, concrete, and paving stones, within Kabul.
Based on the one-year report of Kabul Municipality, in the road repair section, an area of (7385) square meters of roads in Kabul city has been repaired in the form of asphalt, and an area of (3887) square meters has been repaired and sealed in the form of (crackling).
Also, the completion of canals and gullies, including the completion of the "Jar Jabar Khan" canal with a length of (830) meters and a width of 1.1 meters, has been completed. Similarly, the completion of the construction of the canal in the search area of Pul Charkhi (Tangi Gharo) with a length of (273) meters and various widths, the construction of the third section of the Khair Khana canal with a length of (511) meters and various widths related to the 15th district has been completed. According to Kabul Municipality; the construction of the canal on the western part of Shahrak Negahmat Road with a length of (1297) meters and a width of 1.9 meters located in the 12th district, the continuation of the construction of the canal from the airport intersection to the customs road with a length of (2194) meters and a width of two meters are other achievements of Kabul Municipality this year.
The annual report of the Kabul Municipality also states that during the year, this institution has constructed and produced 19 buildings in different areas of Kabul in the construction of public utility buildings, including government buildings, women's markets, shops, greenhouses, warehouses, router wells, deep wells, construction of bathrooms and toilets, construction of electricity towers, etc.
The Kabul Municipality says that during the year, it has renovated about 22 buildings in different areas of Kabul and has also installed 5,000 street lights in different areas. According to this institution, it has completed a total of 5 lighting projects and installed address signs in 22 areas of Kabul. In addition, it has removed 268 obstacles of different sizes from different areas of Kabul.
Coloring the road tables, arranging the database of public and communication roads in Kabul with a total length of (361,801), and continuous monitoring of the excavation works of the telecommunications company Sherkat Breshna are among the other achievements of the Kabul Municipality.
According to the Kabul Municipality report, during the year, about 165 projects worth 6.4 billion Afghanis have been implemented or are being implemented in Kabul city with the cooperation of donors.
Providing municipal services to citizens, including the transfer of (526,080) tons of garbage from 22 districts of Kabul city by the Cleaning Department and private companies and large amounts of sewage and standing water outside the city, collecting (25,990) stray dogs from different districts of Kabul city, as well as vaccinating (8,823) other dogs and sterilizing them, are among the achievements of the municipality in the past year.
Kabul Municipality has also made achievements in matters of greenery, preservation and development of green areas. According to this institution; 2 million plant species (seedlings, flowers, flower beds and willow walls) have been produced, propagated and planted this year.
Pruning (50,000) tree trunks, laying the groundwork for existing and new parks measuring (234,340) square meters, repairing parks, watering flower pots, installing irrigation systems, and providing a scientific research path for 100,000 school students have been among the other works of Kabul Municipality.
Collecting mobile car washes from different areas of Kabul, paying attention to environmental health and environmental issues, urban planning and development, and designing and implementing urban plans, surveying zoning of unplanned areas in the fifth, eighth, and fourteenth districts, issuing building permits, acquiring (2398) properties in different areas of Kabul, executing 8 original documents and 7 duplicates in property matters, beautifying the city and promoting a culture of urbanization, and simplifying the administrative process are among other works reported by the municipality this year.
The importance of social and economic needs assessments in the implementation of infrastructure projects
Details of the annual performance of the Kabul Municipality are being published while urban affairs experts say that for proper and standard implementation, public benefit projects must first attract specialists in technical departments and prevent brain drain.
Engineer Mohammad Rajabzada, an urban affairs expert and university professor, said in an interview with Ava: An infrastructure project requires a plan and design, engineering drawings, structure, environmental needs assessment, preliminary studies and surveys before starting work, during the legal stages.
According to the urban affairs expert, infrastructure projects take a lot of time to implement, but it is a bit questionable how and with what criteria the Kabul Municipality designs and implements dozens of public benefit projects in a year across the city.
Rajabzada added: Before implementing major national projects, socio-cultural studies, environmental studies, economic needs assessments, and even political dimensions should be considered, because projects that lack these criteria cannot be beneficial to citizens and their environment.
Citizens’ satisfaction with the implementation of public benefit projects in Kabul city
Citizens of the capital, especially residents of western Kabul, express their satisfaction with the implementation of public benefit projects in Kabul city.
Sayed Hamed Shahzada, a resident of western Kabul, said in an interview with Ava: Although some citizens are suffering economic and financial losses from the construction of secondary roads, they are also happy with the planning of western Kabul.
Hamed expressed satisfaction with the performance of the Kabul Municipality and added: During the republic, taxes were collected by the municipality, but proper services were not provided, but with the advent of the Islamic Emirate, proper services are provided in exchange for taxes, and we are hopeful for the future of Afghanistan from this perspective.
Ali Ahmad, another Kabul citizen, called the municipality's performance satisfactory and said: "The houses that are demolished along the way of secondary and public roads should be expropriated and the people's losses should be paid in advance by the government." According to him, implementing projects can be beneficial if it causes less economic and social damage to the people, because Afghanistan is not a developed country and its people are often below the poverty line and cannot tolerate major economic losses.