Afghanistan Times
Related Articles
Being a war-hit country, Afghanistan and its people always had great potentials and geostrategic importance in the region and in global politics. Allah, the Almighty has gifted Afghanistan and its people some sort of unique qualities and capabilities in every walk of life. Afghan students and players, whether they are male or female, had been scored a number of shinning successes in their respective fields inside the country and abroad. Most recently, in October of the current year, a student in Balkh province added a new formula to mathematics. In the same month, Rashidullah, a student in Khost province has made a helicopter just like the US Apache choppers. Prior to this, our engineers have been repeatedly made various types of cars, run by diesel, electricity and solar energy. In addition to that, a student in Helmand province made a latest type of light weapon. Rashidullah wished to utilize his potentials in strengthening defense sector of the country. Noting this, which is outstanding and truly appreciable, the government leadership must consider encouraging talented students to pave way for positive and productive competition among our youngsters to further skill them up. Unfortunately, the government pad less attention to the present and future (students/youth), especially the engineering sector of the country. No doubt, we have made significant progress in all areas, since the ouster of the Taliban regime in 2001. But, our students are being needed of further opportunities and comfortable environment. While bridging the gap, we need individual and collective commitment, responsive educational syllabus, institutions and job opportunities to our students. Establishing occasional and polytechnic colleges with well-equipped workshops are the fundamentals in creating skilled personnel reservoir. It’s a sacred fact that peace and stability is the backbone for every developed country, in which we need that at most. Similarly, local and international investment is also stimulus to change insurgency and instability into peace, stability and harmony for all. Afghanistan, being a front line state in war on terror, is still rendering highest number of sacrifices. After 16 years, our previous and incumbent governments and our international allies and friends have neither achieved the ultimate objective of prevailing required peace and stability in the country, nor we, meaningfully, concentrated on the terror sponsor states and terror havens, outside the country. President Ashraf Ghani spooked on the weakness of educational syllabus and termed it ‘un-responsive’ to meet the needs of students and country as well. However, progress regarding basic changes in the primary and higher education syllabus has yet not displayed. The new US administration has decided to exercise policy of stick and carrot on Pakistan to force it to shun terror havens on its soil. At the same time we are very much optimistic as stick already out. Besides that, Pakistan still remained stuck to its old narrative, denying terror sanctuaries in FATA, Baluchistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and other parts of that country and exporting cross-point-border terrorism. Afghan people are losing patience. Restoration of peace and stability in the country is the first and last responsibility of the regional countries and international community. The Unity Government has to make its diplomacy meaningful to convince the international community to invest in natural resources in the country. We have an estimated $3 trillion untapped energy and mineral resources. We have more than 1400 mineral fields. Barite, chromites, coal, gold, copper, natural gas, iron ore, lead, precious and semi-precious stones, petroleum, salt, sulfur, talc and zinc are among the major mineral resources, existing in valleys and mountains across the country. In December 2013, the former President Hamid Karzai claimed the deposits of mineral resources are actually worth $30 trillion. The natural potential in Afghanistan and its hard-working and strong muscled people can contribute to the country’s and its partners economic development and growth. The government and the regional countries and the international community should take advantage of the geostrategic location of the Heart of Asia to share harmony. However, any delay in Afghanistan’s development and tougher and punitive approach on terror sponsor states would be disastrous for the regional and global peace and prosperity.
