Afghanistan Times
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AT-KABUL: The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Afghanistan, Abdullah Abdullah, stressed that water should be utilized as a source of friendship and economic integration.
Addressing the International Decade for Action “Water for Life” 2005-2015 Conference in Dushanbe, the capital city of Tajikistan, Abdullah said that Afghanistan is in a unique position both as a source, a transit point, a corridor and water resources and that in line with this the government is committed to utilize the position to maximize the usage of water at home and in the region.
“Thus, the Afghan government is willing to utilize Afghanistan’s geographic location, resources, water as well as international to maximize the use of water for irrigation, power generation,” he added.
He said that Afghanistan is now in a position to engage more constructively at the regional and bilateral levels to address win-win solutions with our friends and neighbors, based on international legal guidelines and prior experiences.
“Not only do we all suffer when water is wasted or not used according to established rules and norms, but we also fail to achieve other social and economic development objectives in a coherent manner,” he added.
Abdullah said that three decades of wars and conflicts in Afghanistan has eroded the country of its infrastructure and capacities and resource management abilities. He said that Afghanistan has made significant strides to catch up with national uplift objectives as part of the reconstruction strategies adopted over the past 13 years with the support of international community as well as neighboring countries. Abdullah appreciated the international community for lending its support to Afghanistan over the past 13 years.
International Decade for Action “Water for Life” 2005-2015 Conference which was initiated by Tajikistan a decade ago and is expected to continue for three days. The conference was attended by senior officials from different countries, including the Ban Ki-moon, the UN Secretary General.
It is worth mentioning that water bodies in Afghanistan cover 75 billion cubic meters, of which only 30 percent remains in the country and the rest is channeled to other countries.
