20 NOVEMBER 2011 | GHOR, AFGHANISTAN

 

CHALLENGE Years of neglect and a lack of funds have taken their toll on infrastructure across Afghanistan. Roads across the country are in deplorable condition, especially in the mountainous Ghor Province, where harsh weather and extreme temperatures have left many rural roads impassable during the wet winter months. For much of the year, markets and public services like hospitals in the provincial capital Chaghcharan are closed off to the people who live in the rural areas.

 

INITIATIVE Working with local community leaders in Ghor Province, USAID, and its implementing partner Central Asia Development Group, identified road rehabilitation as the top infrastructure priority in the province. Too many people were isolated and unable to travel across the province, and vehicle traffic had become nearly impossible. The bad roads meant that much of the local commerce was limited and there was little movement of goods and services.

 

A 120 km road in Charsada District was identified for immediate rehabilitation. A combination of building retaining walls to prevent erosion and rock fall, and refurbishing the road meant that the 25 villages and settlements connected by the road would have access to the rest of the province, even when the weather turned bad.

 

RESULTS The 100-day project repaired a 111 km stretch of the 120 km road. More than 1,800 men worked on resurfacing and laying gravel, and approximately 50 women were hired and trained to weave more than 2,100 gabion rock retaining wall cages. The workers repaired the main road and five smaller connecting roads, restoring a vital logistical route.

 

Several other road projects were also identified in Chaghcharan, Passaband, and Saghar districts. The projects were completed in mid to late August, with more than 170 km of roads repaired.

 

The acting governor in Ghor called the road projects “vital to the livelihoods” of the people across the province.