India on Tuesday unveiled new development initiatives for Afghanistan, including a dam to supply Kabul with water and 150 community projects worth $ 80 million, including as it called for an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire in the war-torn country. .
Against the background of growing global concern over increased Taliban attacks, including as he engages in talks with the Afghan government, Foreign Minister S Jaishankar told a virtual international pledging conference that India is committed with a long-term role for the development of Afghanistan.
India’s development portfolio of more than $ 3 billion aims to develop the capacities of the Afghan people and institutions with the aim of improving governance, he said. “Currently, there is no part of Afghanistan that has not been affected by our more than 400 projects spread over the 34 provinces of Afghanistan,” he added.
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Jaishankar announced an agreement with Afghanistan to build the Shahtoot Dam in the Kabul River Basin to provide drinking water for two million residents of the city of Kabul. This will be built on the 202 km Pul-e-Khumri electricity transmission line built in 2009 to provide power to the city.
India will also launch some 150 projects worth $ 80 million as part of the fourth phase of its high-impact community development project initiative, he said. This initiative focuses on smaller projects that can be completed quickly to benefit people in villages and districts.
At the same time, Jaishankar expressed concern about the recent increase in violence in Afghanistan, which he described as a contiguous neighbor. “The increasing level of violence in Afghanistan, naturally, continues to be of great concern. While we support all efforts to achieve peace and stability in Afghanistan, India calls for an immediate and comprehensive ceasefire. We also believe that the peace process should be Afghan-led, Afghan-owned and Afghan-controlled, ”he said.
“India has invested heavily in the peace and development of Afghanistan. We firmly believe that the achievements of the last two decades must be preserved and that the interests of minorities, women and vulnerable sectors must be guaranteed ”, he added.
Taliban and Afghan government negotiating teams have struggled to reach common ground in their talks in Doha, even as international concern has grown over a series of recent attacks, including a terrorist attack on Kabul University this month. which killed almost 30 people.
Jaishankar said India’s development aid for Afghanistan was of five types: major infrastructure projects such as the 218 km Delaram-Zaranj highway providing alternative connectivity through Iran, the India-Afghanistan friendship dam and the building Parliament, human resource development, humanitarian assistance, high-impact community projects, and improving trade and investment through air and land connectivity.
More than 65,000 students have studied in India under scholarship programs, and 15,000 students are currently in India. About 3,000 scholarships have been awarded to Afghan women for higher education and vocational training is being provided to an increasing number of women in Afghanistan.
However, Afghanistan’s growth has been limited by its landlocked geography, and the Indian-developed Chabahar port in Iran has provided alternative connectivity that helped transport 75,000 tonnes of wheat and more than 20 tonnes of medicines and equipment during the Covid-19 pandemic. Jaishankar said.
The 2020 Afghanistan Conference will be co-sponsored in Geneva by the governments of Afghanistan and Finland with the UN from November 23-24. In addition to the pledges of financial support, a new development framework, a joint political statement and a new aid architecture for Afghanistan’s development needs will be drafted during the conference.
The European Union pledged $ 1.2 billion for Afghanistan over the next four years at the conference. Several ministers, including Canadian international development minister Karina Gould, called on the Taliban to declare an immediate ceasefire.
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