KABUL: The Asian Development Bank and the Afghan government signed a $50 million agreement on developing an efficient power distribution system in Afghanistan.
The government will use the fund, half debt and half donation, to create a large network for countrywide power supply. The present decrepit power supply system, benefiting only a small portion of the Afghan population, leaves a lot to be desired.
Finance Minister Anwarul Haq Ahady said at the agreement-signing ceremony: "So far, power supply is confined to major cities… but this is just the beginning of a long-term project, which aims to illuminate all villages across Afghanistan."
The war-crippled country is currently reliant on emergency electricity supply from Tajikistan and Uzbekistan at a rate of two cents per kilowatt. Ahady promised the electricity purchased the two Central Asian countries would be supplied to Pul-i-Khumri in the north, Jalalabad in the east and Gardez in the south.
A new power distribution network would be set up in Sar-i-Pul province, north of Kabul. Cities like Taloqan, Khanabad, Imam Sahib, Breshnakot, Sarobi, Mehtarlam, Qarghayi, Mohammad Agha and Pul Alam will benefit form the project.
He told the ceremony the $26.5 million long-term loan would be repaid to ADB over a period of 40 years while the rest of the amount was aid to help Afghanistan reinvigorate its power infrastructure.
Minister of Energy and Water Mohammad Ismail Khan said completion of the project would take about four years and work on it would be launched in a couple of months.
He added temporary power imports from the neighbouring countries were required at the moment, as the repair of dams and power plants was a time-consuming and capital-intensive task. | 
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