USAID to fund development of Afghan telecommunications

Kabul, August 18, 2004 - The US Agency for International Development (USAID) has granted $14.2 million to Afghanistan's Ministry of Communications to create a national telecommunications system connecting the central government with the country's 34 provinces and creating public access centers for Internet and telephone communications.

According to an Augut 16 press release from the U.S. Embassy in Kabul, the US funding will launch Afghanistan's national district telecommunications project and will place a telecommunications link in each of its 357 districts over the next 14 months.

Using satellite technology, even more remote districts will have access to their own telecommunications centers, which will feature public-access telephones, Internet facilities and connections to key government offices. According to the press release, the telecommunications centers will be run by the private sector, initially creating 1000 jobs and eventually generating as many as 10,000 more as the new wireless technology spreads into surrounding areas.