Sunday, September 04, 2016
Kabul (BNA) Afghanistan’s major housing project, Khwajah Rawash, was officially inaugurated by President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani and Urban Development Affairs and Housing Minister Sayed Sadat Mansoor Naderi in capital Kabul on Friday.
Addressing the ceremony, President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani said that the government has taken major step with inauguration of the project toward sustainable developments, adding that with removing the distrust between the people, government and the private sector, major housing projects would be undertaken to solve the people’s problems. President Ghani said years of hard work and 6.3 billion Afghanis ($94.3 million) had gone into the housing scheme.With the inauguration of the project, the president said, the government had won public confidence in its ability to resolve people’s problems.
The government would have been unable to generate the addition 700 million afs in the absence of a 22 percent increase in the revenue collected by the Ministry of Finance.
“People doesn’t want corruption and force. They want a servant government and I am their first servant,” the president told the gathering, appreciating Minister Naderi for giving deadline to the completion of the project, calling such deadlines as a mean for considering the people’s concerns.
President Ghani vowed to prioritize and provide housing facilities for security forces and families of the martyrs.
“Security forces, families of the martyrs and repatriated Afghan refugees have the right to have housing and accommodation in the country,” the president said. The president also emphasized to fight corruption and bring reforms, adding that if the war is over in the country, Afghanistan’s economy will grow ‘considerably. In the ceremony held on this occasion and was attended by the country’s first lady, cabinet ministers, MPs, presidential advisors and local residents, Minister of Urban Developments and Housing called the project on of the biggest in the country, adding that project was facing challenges at the outset, but fortunately completed with President Ghani’s efforts and supports of the Ministry of Finance.
According to the Minister, the USD 94.3 million project has been implemented over an area of 40 hectares with a period of 4 years. ”Financed by contribution of the people with advance payment scheme and the government, the project includes 78 residential blocks and 2,104 apartments,” he added.
Addressing the ceremony, Minister Naderi highlighted the achievements of his Ministry over the past one year, adding that the Ministry has obtained the commitments of China and UAE to build 10,000 and 1,000 housing units, respectively, in the capital and other provinces of the country. Minister Naderi hopes to launch the construction of these units till end of the year.
“We have also inked MoU with a Qatar organization for the construction of 1,000 housing units,” the minister added. A number of the officials also spoke related to the event, calling inauguration of such projects, a bold step towards sustainable developing and boosting of the housing sector in the country.
