04 August 2004
Nearly 6000 Afghan Militia Forces Disarmed Since April
U.S. Embassy in Kabul reviews progress on various issues
Following is a July 27 press release from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul outlining progress made in Afghanistan in areas such as voter registration; reconstruction; and the Disarmament, Demobilization, and Re-integration (DDR) effort:
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U.S. Embassy Kabul
Office of Public Affairs
For Immediate Release
July 27, 2004
Contact: Beth Lee
070-23-4553
U.S. Embassy Update
The focus of the United States and its coalition partners continues to be reconstruction, elections and Disarmament, Demobilization, and Re-integration (DDR). The facts below list progress made in Afghanistan on several fronts over the last month.
Elections & Voter Registration
-- To date over 8.1 million Afghans have registered to vote.
-- Approximately 41 percent of those who have registered to vote are women.
-- Presidential elections will be held October 9th and Parliamentary will be held in the spring of 2005.
Disarmament, Demobilization, and Re-integration (DDR)
-- 5,796 Afghan Militia Forces have been disarmed since April.
-- 3,782 soldiers have entered the reintegration program since April and 9,316 soldiers have been reintegrated since the beginning of the DDR program.
-- DDR began in Herat.
Heavy Weapons Cantonment
-- Heavy weapons cantonment continues to move forward and the government of Afghanistan and the international community are seeking ways to expedite this process.
-- 20 tanks, 44 armored personnel carriers, and 73 multiple Rocket launchers have been cantoned over the last month.
Afghan National Army (ANA)
-- 3,026 ANA soldiers were newly trained and have been assigned. The ANA has now trained over 13,000 soldiers.
-- A contract was signed for the regional command center in Gardez.
Afghan National Police
-- The Afghan National Police now has 22,300 police officers (trained by coalition forces), many of which have been deployed nationwide.
Infrastructure
-- Construction began on the first 20 km of road from Kandahar to Tirin Kowt.
-- Construction began on the first 19 km of road from Kabul to Gardez.
-- Construction began on the first 50 km of road from Jalalabad to Asadabad.
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs)
-- There are now 15 U.S. and Coalition PRTs nationwide.
-- Sharana PRT in Paktika reached initial operating capability.
-- Mazar-e Sharif PRT is now under NATO/ISAF control.
Education
-- Afghan Primary Education Program (APEP) has printed and distributed 764 thousand textbooks for use in the Accelerated Learning Activities.
-- Nearly 6.5 million textbooks, of over 16 million printed on behalf of the Ministry of Education, have been printed and delivered to Kabul for distribution.
Health Clinics and Providers
-- 224 health workers trained this period with an additional 122 currently in training.
Commercial Activity
-- 1017 business licenses have been issued - over 3360 since the beginning of the CY.
-- 975 taxpayer ID #s have been issued - over 7300 since the beginning of the CY.
Customs Reform
-- $30.5 million in customs revenue has been collected since March 21st.
RAMP Projects - (Rebuilding Agricultural Market Programs)
-- 530 women were trained in poultry management.
-- 20 micro loans were administered.
-- There was over 19 km of canal rehabilitation completed.
-- 60 market centers complete, 2 under construction, and 56 more programmed.
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(Distributed by the Bureau of International Information Programs, U.S. Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)
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