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USAID/OTI Afghanistan Field Report May 2004
Program Description
USAID/OTI's program goal is to increase citizen awareness of and confidence in the process of recovery, rehabilitation and democratic political development in post-conflict Afghanistan. Towards accomplishing this goal, OTI’s objectives are to:
- Increase the Afghan government’s capacity to respond to citizens’ needs;
- Increase citizen awareness of and/or participation in democratic processes;
- Increase the capacity of the Afghan Media
Working with central and provincial governments, national and international NGOs, informal community groups, and media outlets, OTI identifies and supports critical initiatives that facilitate implementation of the Bonn Agreement, which was designed to move the country further along the continuum from war to peace. OTI’s rapid support for activities in Afghanistan’s transition period also helps to establish credibility and space for longer-term development assistance. Projects are funded in 31 provinces of the country. To date, 547 grants and sub-grants have been cleared for implementation. These grants advance OTI objectives by:
- Reestablishing relationships and routines that give communities cohesiveness;
- Strengthening economic recovery by improving essential commercial and public infrastructure;
- Contributing to sustainable stability and recovery by helping the Afghan government to function outside Kabul and respond to community priorities;
- Improving communications infrastructure;
- Strengthening independent media; and
- Creating and/or strengthening linkages among the national, provincial, and district governments
USAID/OTI’s program in Afghanistan is from October 2001 – July 2005. To date, OTI has funds from various sources, including Transition Initiative Funds (TI), International Disaster Assistance Funds (IDA), Development Assistance Funds (DA), and State Department Economic Support Funds (ESF). To date, OTI has approved 547 grants and subgrants worth an estimated $35 million.
OTI’s current implementing partners are the International Organization for Migration—Afghanistan Transition Initiative (IOM-ATI) and Internews. IOM-ATI offices are located in Kabul, Bamyan, Gardez, Herat, Kandahar, Kunduz, Maimana and Mazar. Previous USAID/OTI partners included the Voice of America (VOA), the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), and Ronco.
Country Situation
Country Faces Continued Violence in Run-up to September Elections: A car carrying Afghan security forces was ambushed in Balkh Province in the north, killing five. In another incident, an explosive device planted on a road in southeastern Afghanistan wounded a US soldier. The soldier was travelling in a convoy of US military vehicles in Zabul Province. Staff of the UK-based Global Risk Strategies were shot dead in Nuristan Province, northeastern Afghanistan on May 4 while preparing for elections registration in the Province. Two Swiss nationals, apparently tourists, were found dead in a park in west Kabul on May 9. Criminal intent is suspected in the murders. A bomb went off in Faryab Province outside an NGO office. There were no casualties reported.
The Province continues to be somewhat tense as militia loyal to General Dostum, a northern warlord, continue to occupy the Province. A NATO peace-keeping convoy came under rocket attack on May 23 in Kabul. Several peacekeepers were reportedly injured and one Norwegian peacekeeper was killed, the third peacekeeper killed this year. On-going operations to capture militants continue in southern Afghanistan. One recent event in southern Afghanistan reportedly resulted in the death of twenty Taliban fighters.
Elections Law Approved: President Karzai endorsed new electoral legislation on May 27. This will enable elections for the president, parliament and regional councils. The legislation was first presented for review and approval to the cabinet. Elections are tentatively scheduled for September 2004.
Voter Registration Drive Accelerated: As of April 28, nearly two million people have registered to vote in eight regional urban centers (98% of the anticipated target for registration in these areas). An estimated 30% of the total comprises women. The UN announced it is accelerating openings of voter registration sites. At the beginning of the month there were 100 sites. Now there are nearly 400 hundred. It is anticipated that 4,000 sites are needed to register nearly ten million eligible voters.
Main Phase of Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Underway: Phase I of the national disarmament, demobilization and reintegration effort is finally underway. The government has committed to a 40% reduction in armed forces by July 5 and 100% heavy weapons cantonment by elections. A total of 6,410 soldiers have been demobilized through the national DDR program. Of 5,633 ex-combatants who have elected to participate in reintegration, the majority have elected agricultural packages (37%), and vocational training and job placement (39%). The main phase of DDR is now underway in the provinces of Kabul and Wardak in eastern and central Afghanistan. A recent exercise in Wardak Province resulted in a large number of weapons being turned over for cantonment. Powerful regional warlords have recently agreed to disarm their militias or integrate them into the Afghan National Army.
Prisoner Abuse Allegations Investigated: Faced with allegations of prisoner abuse by coalition forces, the U.S. announced an investigation of all coalition-run prisons. Internal U.S. investigations are being conducted into two cases of prisoner abuse while a review of detention procedures is also being undertaken.
Afghans Awarded for their Contributions to Rebuilding their Country: President Karzai was recently awarded the Liberty Medal. The Philadelphia Liberty Medal, established in 1988 by the Philadelphia Foundation as a lasting legacy to the 200th anniversary of the U.S. constitution, honors individuals or organizations that have demonstrated leadership and vision in the pursuit of liberty or freedom from oppression, ignorance or deprivation. The President is expected to accept the award and the $100,000 prize money during a scheduled trip to the U.S. in June. Dr. Sima Samar, currently head of the U.S.-supported Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission, received the John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award. Samar, an Afghan doctor, defied the Taliban to provide girls and women with access to health care. Through a nonprofit organization she established in 1989, Samar has opened four hospitals and numerous health clincis and schools for girls and women.
Southern Afghanistan Affected by Drought: The World Food Programme has launched an effort to provide food aid to over 360,000 people over the next two months in southern Afghanistan. The operation is expected to help prevent a rise in internal displacement in a region where an estimated 80% of those already displaced have been displaced due to drought. The region was recently declared drought-affected by the Governor of Kandahar.
USAID/OTI Highlights
A. Narrative Summary
Overview:
- Grant Activity: To date, OTI has approved a total of 572 grants and sub grants worth $38 million. During the month of May, 21 new grants valued at $2,616,000 were approved for implementation.
- Monitoring and Evaluation: The performance monitoring plan for the country program was revised and agreement was reached on a schedule for conducting a series of case studies and impact evaluations. Monitoring and evaluation of projects will be undertaken by a combination of OTI and implementing partner staff and contracted firms through June 2005. The first of the studies will be on gender mainstreaming in the IOM-ATI program and an assessment of OTI funding of media activities.
- Staff Travel and Training: One of OTI’s Afghan program staff successfully completed a week-long USAID-sponsored senior leadership training and two other program managers successfully completed a week-long USAID-sponsored supervisory skills training in Washington, DC. Staff participated in the USAID Afghan Working Group meeting, and briefed working group members and Senate staffers about OTI-supported women’s issues and peace-building initiatives. OTI’s Senior Program Manager and DDR Specialist traveled to Kunduz early in the week to interact with local leaders and monitor OTI projects, DDR activities, and elections registration.
- Disengagement Planning and Progress: OTI took its first steps towards phasing over its programming to USAID Mission management with the close-out of the IOM-ATI field office in Maimana, Faryab Province in northwestern Afghanistan. The second of eight IOM-ATI field offices, located in Herat in western Afghanistan, is on schedule to close out by the second week in June. There are currently thirteen projects that are being implemented through the office, eight of which are infrastructure projects. Two of the projects involve constructing, furnishing and equipping Provincial Women’s Centers in Farah and Badghis provinces. The plan is to complete all of the grants except for the women’s centers by the second week of June. Both field offices will become project offices supporting construction of schools and clinics and implementing projects under the Provincial Reconstruction Team Quick Impact Project for USAID. Discussions have begun with IOM-ATI to phase out programming from Kunduz and Bamyan field offices and to increasingly concentrate resources in the south and east of the country in the run-up to elections in September.
Capacity Building for the TISA and its Outreach to Afghan Citizens:
- Support for War-Affected Communities in the South and East (Leahy Initiative): The south and east of the country (where OTI’s partner, IOM-ATI, Gardez and Kandahar offices are located) continue to be volatile and high-risk, which impacts IOM-ATI’s capacity to implement USAID/OTI funded projects. OTI is supporting the development of national NGOs and private national consultants to be involved in monitoring, evaluation, and community outreach with training based on operating methodologies for work in insecure environments. OTI’s grant assistance to insecure areas of the country supports the Government’s capacity to work with war-affected communities to address their priorities. IOM-ATI teams traveled to Ghazni and Gardez in the south to assist communities and local government officials to identify priorities and develop approaches to jointly addressing them. A variety of new project concepts were approved to support activities in the insecure provinces of Khost (south east), Nuristan (north east) and Daikundi (a new central district where many are engaged in poppy growing), as well as for activities in Kabul Province. Projects included water supply and public sanitation, bridge construction and gender training for government officials. One project concept was approved for Ghazni District in the south of the country. The project, which will be funded through the Leahy Initiative, will rehabilitate an underground waterway in a village recently affected by U.S. military operations.
- Gender Mainstreaming and Promotion of Women's Participation in Political Processes: OTI approved several new grants during the month that will support networking and information sharing among women-run NGOs, support publication and distribution of the Women and Law Magazine, and teach women in Bamyan Province in central Afghanistan to produce honey for sale and home consumption. Bamyan Province has limited economic opportunities.
- Work Begins on Gardez Provincial Women's Center: During May, IOM-ATI began work in Gardez in eastern Afghanistan on the fifth of fourteen Provincial Women's Centers. The centers are being built to provide outreach for the Afghan Ministry of Women's Affairs (MOWA). The centers, which are being built, equipped and furnished with funding from USAID, will offer a variety of courses, activities and events to support the Ministry’s efforts to involve Afghan women in political life, promote their education and enhance their employment opportunities. The groundbreaking ceremony for the Gardez center was attended by the Governor of Paktya province, MOWA representatives from Kabul and Paktya, USAID officials and other dignitaries. Work on a sixth center is scheduled to begin in Badakshan province in northeastern Afghanistan in early June. Work on other centers in Parwan and Kapisa provinces in the east and in Farah and Badghis in the far west is ongoing.
Progress in constructing many Provincial Women’s Centers continues to be hindered by the difficulty in obtaining deeds to the land upon which Centers will be built in targeted provinces. USAID and IOM-ATI staff met with the Minister of Women’s Affairs and representatives of the President's Office to help move the process forward.
Media Development and Civic Education
- Grant Activity: During the reporting period, OTI approved a series of grants that will strengthen the capacity of the AINA Media Center, which was formed in 2002 with support from OTI and other donors as a means to encourage development of independent media in post-Taliban Afghanistan. The Center has played a significant role in attracting media outlets to return their operations to Afghanistan from their temporary bases in Pakistan. The new grants will support equipment upgrades at the Center in Kabul and strengthen production capacity for print, radio, videography and training units. They will also support the expansion and increased capacity of seven regional media centers.
- Women’s Radio station in Herat Increases Programming: Radio Sahar is one of fifteen community FM ra-dio stations established by USAID in Afghanistan through implementing partner, Internews. The station, which broadcasts on 88.7 MHz, went on the air October 25, 2003, and reaches approximately 300,000 people in the city of Herat. To date Radio Sahar has received approximately $18,000 in USAID support for equipment, training and operations. The station currently broadcasts three hours a day and has plans to increase to six hours a day.
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| USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health, Dr. Anne Peterson, interviewed on women’s radio station in Herat. |
This station is one of four stations managed and operated by women, which actively advance women’s issues in their programming. All the staff of Radio Sahar are women and at least half of the programming is designed for a female audience. In addition to broadcasting programs produced by Internews, Radio Sahar also produces local content. The station dedicates one hour a week to general health concerns and the staff frequently interview doctors, dentists and other heath care professionals.
During a recent visit to Afghanistan, Dr. Anne Peterson, USAID Assistant Administrator for Global Health, visited the station. Dr. Peterson was interviewed on air about USAID’s health programs in the country, with a special focus on USAID efforts to distribute chlorine for water purification.
- Development of Radio in Afghanistan: Internews Presents at Monthly PRT Commanders’ Conference: Internew’s Country Director, John West, and Technical Director, Christian Quick, presented their OTI-supported media development activities. They reviewed accomplishments to date, the rationale for the type and scope of assistance to establish private independent radio stations, and plans to expand coverage by establishing 20 additional stations during the coming year. They also responded to questions from Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) representatives about the type of assistance that could be provided by PRTs to strengthen media capacity and outreach.
Internews and the Governors of Wardak and Parwan Provinces are working together to establish private inde-pendent radio stations. Discussions during the past week have led to an agreement about the possible location of radio stations in the provinces. The Governors have agreed to help with identification of local investors in the station.
Internews is also responding to the Governor of Kandahar’s request to strengthen the production capacity of local media outlets. A team from Internews and OTI’s Media and Civic Education Advisor, Adam Kaplan, will travel to Kandahar Province in the south of the country in June to assess media capacity and determine the scope of their response to improve local production capacity for both state and independent media.
OTI has just completed two months of successful bridge funding for the Good Morning Afghanistan program. As planned, the European Commission will provide funding for future program and production support. During the two-month period, OTI funds supported production and distribution of You and Your President, a weekly radio program in which the Afghan President responds to questions sent in by listeners.
Following is a status report on OTI’s support for private, independent radio stations through Internews:
| COMPLETED |
| 1 |
Bamyan City, Bamyan |
Bamyan Radio |
100 |
49,300 |
| 2 |
Jalalabad, Nangarhar |
Radio Sharq |
100 |
610,380 |
| 3 |
Kabul City, Kabul |
Killid Radio Station |
100 |
1,859,047 |
| 4 |
Mohamad Agha, Logar |
Millie-Paygham Radio Station |
100 |
42,034 |
| 5 |
Puli-Khumri, Baghlan |
Taraj-Mir Radio Station |
100 |
162,263 |
| 6 |
Qara-Bagh, Kabul |
Qara-Bagh Shura Radio Station |
100 |
253,713 |
| 7 |
Herat City, Herat |
Sahar Radio |
100 |
243,646 |
| 8 |
Kandahar City, Kandahar |
Radio Azad Afghan |
100 |
244,598 |
| 9 |
Balkh, Balkh |
Naw Bahari-Balkh |
100 |
208,857 |
| 10 |
Khost, Khost |
Suli-Paygham |
100 |
58,767 |
| 11 |
Mazar, Balkh |
Rabia Balkhi |
100 |
243,997 |
| 12 |
Kunduz, Kunduz |
Radio Zohra |
100 |
45,000 (predicted) |
| 13 |
Ghoryan, Herat |
Neday Sullah |
100 |
60,005 |
| 14 |
Chekh-Chiran, Ghor |
Radio Chikh-Chiran |
100 |
15,310 |
| 15 |
Baraki-Barak Logar |
Istiqlal Radio |
100 |
80,029 (predicted) |
| PLANNED |
| 16 |
Taloqan, Takhar |
Negotiations underway with potential partners |
NA |
TBD |
| 17 |
Faizabad, Badakshan |
Partnerships arranged; land ownership issues being discussed |
NA |
TBD |
| 18 |
Imam Sahib, Kunduz |
Partnership with shura being dis-cussed; possibility of National Soli-darity Program support for station; Internews to be build structures |
NA |
120,000 |
| 19 |
Baghlan Jadid, Baghlan |
Potential partners meeting with government and shuras to address land issues |
100 |
107,000 |
| 20 |
Paghman, Kabul |
Discussions with National Solidarity Program about a potential partnership |
NA |
TBD |
| 21 |
Wardak |
Negotiations underway with Governor regarding potential partners and locations:
- Markazi Bhisood
- Maydan Shahar
- Saydaabad
- Chak
|
NA |
- 48,000
- 21,000
- 20,000
- 13,000
|
| 22 |
Lashkar Gah, Helmand |
NA |
NA |
TBD |
| 23 |
Shindan or Enjil, Herat |
NA |
NA |
TBD |
| 24 |
Farah |
NA |
NA |
TBD |
| 25 |
Gardez or Ghazni |
NA |
NA |
TBD |
- Strengthening Strategic Communications within the Office of the President’s Spokesperson: With fund-ing from USAID/OTI, The Rendon Group (TRG) continued their assistance to the Spokesperson’s Office by supporting work to refurbish a Palace Press Center. TRG also worked to strengthen staff capacity by creating a job description for the head of the Media Monitoring Unit, providing training for the Spokesperson’s Special Assistant, interviewing prospective translators, and identifying staffing shortfalls. After weeks of planning, the Spokesperson’s Office was restructured. Qualified directors have been successfully recruited for two other main units in the Office: media monitoring and production. TRG also provided planning support for the President’s scheduled trip to the U.S., and helped the Spokesperson’s Office to prepare for and convene a meeting to develop and coordinate public information on the national disarmament, demobilization and reintegration strategy.
- OTI Partner Sponsored Popular Cultural Events in Kabul: Arman FM, the popular OTI-funded inde-pendent commercial radio station located in Kabul, was a principle sponsor in Afghanistan’s first public music concert in twenty years. The event was attended by thousands of men and women and is a major step forward in Afghan civic culture. The concert featured a famous folk/pop singer, Farad Darya, famous for his musical and linguistic abilities. OTI plans to work with the artist to create CDs promoting civic education and elections-related material through music. Arman FM also continued its one-year anniversary celebrations with a listener contest. The station received over 33,000 entries and 22 winners won cash and mobile telephone sets.
- Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration One of OTI’s Senior Field Advisors, Jason Aplon, is currently in Afghanistan to assist the U.S. Government (USG) with developing a plan to program USG resources to support demobilization and reintegration efforts in the country. USAID is in the process of building USG capacity to support national DDR efforts, including hiring demobilization, reintegration and vocational education expertise.
The Demobilization and Reintegration (D&R) Commission and the Afghanistan New Beginnings Program (ANBP) are prepared to absorb at least 17,000 ex-combatants into short and medium term reintegration options including vocational training and jobs. Sustainability of reintegration packages remains a question, but is largely dependent upon economic development in the regions. USAID is working closely with the D&R Commission to identify what reintegration shortfalls may exist that could be addressed with USG funding and technical support. USAID is in the process of finalizing a PAPA (U.S. interagency agreement) to enable funding for the Department of Defense to provide transport for the cantonment of heavy weapons, which is essential to creating an enabling environment for demobilization and reintegration.
B. Grant Activity Summary – USAID/OTI Afghanistan
USAID/OTI summary of cleared and completed activities since program start-up in October 2001:
| Civil Society Organization Support |
14 |
$1,077,726 |
| Community Impact Activities |
326 |
$13,997,049 |
| Conflict Management |
5 |
$157,813 |
| Election Processes |
8 |
$3,321,361 |
| Justice/Human Rights |
11 |
$902,938 |
| Media |
91 |
$10,912,078 |
| Transparency/Good Governance |
117 |
$7,828,741 |
| TOTAL |
572 |
$38,197,707
|
USAID/OTI activities cleared in April 2004:
| Independent Commercial Television in Kabul: Production Equipment and Administration and Office Equipment. |
Tolo TV Moby Capital Partners |
211 employees of Tolo TV Kabul Afghanistan and an estimated 3-5 million people in the Kabul metropolitan |
Kabul |
| Gender Training for Ministry of Refugees and Repatriation Staff, Kabul |
Afghan Institute of Train-ing and Management |
20 staff of the ministry; fe-male returnees who will benefit from staff with gen-der-focused approach |
Kabul |
| Consolidation of Media Production Capacity for AINA (2 grants) |
AINA |
250 employees of Aina’s media and cultural centers: 600,000 Afghan readers of AINA publications; 1 million viewers of mobile cinema productions, 4 million regular listeners of AINA radio pro-gramming |
Kabul, Balkh, Ghazni
|
| Media Training for Afghanistan’s Office of the Presidential Spokes-person |
The Rendon Group |
20 staff members of the Office of the President’s Spokesperson |
Kabul |
| Production of Public Affairs Materials on USAID-TISA Activities |
Lopez Design |
30 Afghan media outlets; Afghan citizens who will receive the information |
Kabul |
| University Media Centers and Training: Balkh, Kabul, Kandahar, Khost |
Sayara Media and Com-munication |
130 students and 6 faculty who will be trained through the journalism programs; 350 students who will receive training at the media centers; radio stations will broadcast to an estimated 200,000 peo-ple |
Kabul, Balkh, Kandahar, Khost |
| Income Generation and Training through Women’s Hamam (tradi-tional washing facility), Bamyan |
Bamyan Women’s Hamam Management Group |
10 widowed women who run the hamam; women and chil-dren from Bamyan who will have a place to bathe and receive information on hygiene and reproductive health |
Bamyan |
| Dam Reconstruction, Qarghanatu Valley, Bamyan District |
Communities of Qarghanatu Valley |
600 families in 15 villages; 1,700 laborers |
Bamyan |
| Two Civic Education Workshops, Bamyan Center, Bamyan Province |
Afghan Women for Development |
100 women and 50 men from Bamyan center |
Bamyan |
| Micro-enterprise (Honeybee Production) for Vulnerable Women in Bamyan |
Education and Aid Center |
40 vulnerable women (widows and returnees) |
Bamyan |
| Construction of Surrounding Wall for Provincial Women’s Center, Herat |
Department of Women’s Affairs |
Employees of the Department of Women’s Affairs; women in the surrounding communi-ties |
Herat |
| Women’s NGO Networking and Information Sharing in Kabul |
Afghan Women’s Net-work |
65 member NGOs (an estimated 10 women per NGO); 14,000 through information dissemination (monthly meetings, networking workshops, internet café, library) |
Kabul |
| Construction of Houses and Cul-verts, Petaw Village, Gelan, Ghazni |
Community of Petaw Village |
23 families |
Ghazni |
| Support for Women and Law Magazine |
Afghan Women Lawyer and Professional Associa-tion |
15 staff; 1,000 readers |
Kabul,
National |
| Capacity Building for Municipal Water System in Khanabad City, Kunduz |
Community of Khanabad City |
15,000 people |
Kunduz |
| Construction of 10 Culverts in Shorandam Village, Kandahar |
Community of Shorandam |
300 families of Shorandam; 5,000 residents of Daman District: 100 unskilled and 20 skilled laborers for 80 days |
Kandahar |
C. Indicators of Success
President Karzai Inaugurates Newly Rehabilitated Teacher Training College in Herat, Western Afghanistan: The building, rehabilitated with support from USAID/OTI and the Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in Herat has 22 lecture rooms, office space, a library, a computer room and a conference room. It also has space to house 50 students from the western provinces of Badghis, Farah, Ghor and Herat. The college has the capacity to provide refresher training for 8,330 teachers currently teaching at 704 schools in the region and to train new teachers. “I am deeply grateful to USAID and IOM for their contributions,” the President said. “Will anyone show me how to use these computers?” President Karzai said later while standing in the computer room, furnished with ten desktop computers, two printers, a copier, a scanner and a projector. He said that he had never had the chance to learn how to use them and said students who can study here are “very lucky.”
Opening of Internet Club and Training Course to Encourage Internet Use in Northern Afghanistan: On May 25, OTI partner IOM-ATI held an opening for an Internet club and a training course at Balkh University in north-central Afghanistan. The acting provincial Governor (also Director of University), Director of the Culture and Information Department, representative of the Education Department and directors of University depart-ments attended the event. Women videographers trained by the AINA Media Center with OTI support, filmed the opening as part of another project to cover women’s roles in reconstruction. The event was also covered by AINA TV in Jawzjan, Bakhtar news agency, Azardi radio and the University film unit. The training course has begun with twelve students per course. There are four courses held each day for a duration of two weeks per course. The ratio of participants is eight female students to four male students and they are attending the same classes.
OTI Supports Establishment and Operation of Branch Office for the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC) in Maimana, Faryab Province: OTI’s support to the AIHRC began over a year ago with $500,000 grant through the United Nations for its establishment. The grant assistance in Faryab Province is de-signed to extend the reach and responsiveness of the Commission in an area with a large population of refugees and internally displaced people. Support was provided to physically rehabilitate office space for the branch office, to furnish and equip it and support staffing of the office. A three-year rent-free lease for the office space was provided in exchange for the physical improvements. “We are very happy with the office,” said an AIHRC representative. “It has shown us that the international community cares about the Commission’s development.” To date, OTI’s operational assistance to the Commission has helped to mitigate tensions between factional groups and assisted internally displaced people in the northwest. The inauguration of the office was covered by local radio stations.
Student Radio goes on the air in Herat: The Journalism Department of Herat University launched their student run radio station in May 2004. Herat TV and the BBC both reported on the celebration attended by the entire faculty, student body, the Dean of Herat University, and the Governor of Herat, Ismail Khan.
The journalist training program at Herat University is funded by OTI through the Afghan NGO Sayara. OTI also provided funding for the equipment for the student run station. The radio station is entirely managed and operated by the students and faculty. Conveniently located in an annex behind the Journalism Department, the radio station has two soundproofed recording studios and audio editing facilities. There are 130 students, including 32 women, studying journalism at the school and the radio program has 13 female and 19 male students. Given the success of this project, OTI will fund a Sayara project to provide continued support for journalism faculties in Herat and Kabul, for the establishment of a similar program in Mazar-e-Sharif, and expanded print journalism training fa-cilities in Khost and Kandahar.
NEXT STEPS/IMMEDIATE PRIORITIES
During the month of June 2004, USAID/OTI will:
- Expand field-based monitoring of OTI-supported programs and continue implementing the performance monitoring plan by undertaking a special study on gender mainstreaming in the IOM-implemented Afghanistan Transition Initiative and by sponsoring an assessment of OTI-sponsored programs to develop radio journalism, infrastructure, programming and distribution.
- Develop and begin accelerated implementation of an action plan for programs concentrated in the south and east of the country in areas affected by US military operations.
- Work to settle land title issues associated with construction of fourteen provincial women’s centers for the Ministry of Women’s Affairs.
- Finalize close-out of IOM-ATI field offices in Maimana and Herat and develop a comprehensive close-out plan for the remaining offices.
For further information, please contact:
In Washington: Elizabeth Callender, USAID/OTI/ANE Program Manager, Tel: 202-712-4078, ecallender@usaid.gov
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