17 Dec 2009

AFGHANISTAN / ROADS

Afghanistan’s road system, damaged by decades of war and a serious impediment to economic growth, faces reconstruction and rehabilitation. UNAMA

Posted at: December 17, 2009 3:05 pm

Duration: 02:07

Available in: SD

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Full script

STORY: AFGHANISTAN / ROADS 
TRT: 2.07 
SOURCE: UNAMA / UNICEF 
RESTRICTIONS: NONE 
LANGUAGE: DARI / ENGLISH / NATS

DATELINE: RECENT / FILE

SHOTLIST:

FILE – UNICEF - OCTOBER 2008, AFGHANISTAN

1. Wide shot, city of Bamiyan in the central highlands 
2. Wide shot, truck on rural road 
3. Med shot, army truck 
4. Med shot, trucks at checkpoint 
5. Med shot, children on donkey on dirt road 
6. Med shot, rural doctor with patients 
7. Close-up, rural doctor writing prescription

UNAMA – DECEMBER 2009, AFGHANISTAN

8. Wide shot, construction along the Ghorband River 
9. Med shot, men working 
10. Close-up, truck pulling in 
11. SOUNDBITE (Dari) Mohammad Rasol, Afghan Road Construction Worker: 
"We are very happy with the work being done here. Also we appreciate the Government's initiative. When the construction of this road ends, the journey time to Kabul will be cut by half which means one and half day." 
12. Wide shot, construction site 
13. Med shot, tractor removing gravel

FILE – UNICEF - OCTOBER 2008, AFGHANISTAN

14. Med shot, children farming with cows 
15. Close-up, child collecting potatoes 
16. Med shot, dirt road in village center 
17. Med shot, making bread in village 
18. Various shots, selling the bread at stand in village

UNAMA – DECEMBER 2009, AFGHANISTAN

19. SOUNDBITE (English) Sayeed Khan Ahmadzai, Road Engineer, UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS): 
"The main aim of NRAP it to enhance women's security and also the economic growth of the community by the around access in the year to provide facilities and access to health services." 
20. Pan right, road construction site 
21. SOUNDBITE (Dari) Zalmai, Afghan Road Construction Worker: 
"I am working now at the first part of this road from Matak to Bameyan. I am happy to have this opportunity to earn some money to feed my family and therefore I thank the government for this project." 
22. Med shot, road construction site 
23. Wide shot, trucks on road

STORYLINE:

Afghanistan's road system, damaged by decades of war and a serious impediment to economic growth, faces reconstruction and rehabilitation.

Without critical infrastructure such as road system, many of Afghanistan's provinces are cut off from access to vital services such as education and healthcare.

Today, the Afghan government works with the World Bank and UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS) to build roads through its National Rural Access Program (NRAP). This programme recruits locals to build and rehabilitate thousands of kilometers of roads linking rural areas to city centers.

Mohammad Rasol, a local road construction worker, says that a trip to Kabul from the country's central highlands often takes days on foot and road. Now with a new road, the trip will be cut by half.

SOUNDBITE (Dari) Mohammad Rasol, Afghan Road Construction Worker: 
"We are very happy with the work being done here. Also we appreciate the Government's initiative. When the construction of this road ends, the journey time to Kabul will be cut by half which means one and half day."

According to UNOPS, the benefits of the programme are countless. A new road system will improve accessibility, open rural businesses up for regional and national markets and lead to better allocation of resources, technology transfer and higher productivity.

SOUNDBITE (English) Sayeed Khan Ahmadzai, Road Engineer, UN Office for Project Services (UNOPS): 
"The main aim of NRAP is to enhance women's security and also the economic growth of the community by the around access in the year to provide facilities and access to health services."

The programme is also creating jobs and has, so far, generated over 12 million labour days for the locals. Zalmai, another road construction worker, is grateful that through the programmet he is able to find work and feed his family.

SOUNDBITE (Dari) Zalmai, Afghan Road Construction Worker: 
"I am working now at the first part of this road from Matak to Bameyan. I am happy to have this opportunity to earn some money to feed my family and therefore I thank the government for this project."

The ongoing road construction that links the central provinces such as Bamiyan is expected to end this year. Next year, the programme will include the rehabilitation of roads across Afghanistan's northern region. So far over 9,000 kilometers of roads have been constructed or rehabilitated connecting rural Afghanistan in all 34 provinces.