Proposed Platform
Of Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Presidential Candidate,
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Of Dr. Abdullah Abdullah, Presidential Candidate,
Islamic Republic of Afghanistan
Table of Contents
1. Political System
2. Ensuring Security and Fighting Terrorism
3. Fighting against Government Corruption
4. Ensuring National Unity
5. Fighting Narcotics
6. Foreign Relations
7. Justice and Judicial Affairs
8. Economy
9. Industry
10. Commerce
11. Development
12. Agriculture and Livestock
13. Rural Development
14. Education and Higher Education
15. Health
16. Women’s Affairs
17. Youth Affairs
18. Reform in Governance
19. Cultural Affairs
20. Democracy and Human Rights
21. Refugee and Returnee Affairs
22. Public Welfare
23. Environment
In the Name of God, Most Gracious, Most Merciful
Change and Hope
After the fall of the Taliban and Al Qaida, as a result of national resistance and cooperation of the international community, a new political horizon was opened in Afghanistan. The Interim Authority and Transitional Government based on the Bonn Agreement were formed. After the Emergency Loya Jirga and ratification of the Constitution, presidential elections were held. People participated in the elections with much enthusiasm and Mr. Hamid Karzai was elected as president of Afghanistan. During all this, the international community played an active and effective presence, and, with its extensive financial, political and military assistance, supported the formation and establishment of a legal and elected state. For the elected state under the leadership of Mr. Karzai many appropriate national and international opportunities were presented. With all these fortuitous occasions, President Karzai could have strengthened national trust, and led the country in the direction of stability and development.
However, today, everyone, both inside and outside, agrees that because of unhealthy policies and weak and compromising management, not much advantage was taken from these good occasions. The achievements of Hamid Karzai’s government, compared to the billions of dollars that came into the country and to the international opportunities and national good will, are considered nil and below par.
Continuation of state corruption, with discrimination and injustice in the mentality and actions of the men of state, decreased state’s capacity and capability in utilizing international assistance. Security situation and enduring stability took an undesired direction. Violence and terrorism, which were defeated with the national resistance and international community’s assistance, returned once again. The policies that Mr. Karzai adopted contrary to the large national viewpoint caused dissent and increased mistrust in the social relations and in the relations between the state and the people. This policy seriously hurt the state legitimacy as the basic and required element of stability and development. Continuation of this policy also resulted in distance between the state and the international community. On the other hand, Afghanistan, as one side of the issue still does not have a defined and effective place in the international game that is going on in the region, such that its national interests demand.
The people of Afghanistan know that continuation of the current government will once again result in war, insecurity, injustice, mistrust, lawbreaking, and a source of reentry into an escalation of crisis for Afghanistan. Therefore, saving the country from the current situation will be an inseparable part of our struggle in eliminating the evil of terrorism, instability, and the cultivating and trafficking of drugs, which can be the beginning of a new era of progress and happiness in Afghanistan.
The state’s inability to establish an effective administration, with a healthy, serving and responsive management system, and the implementation of a multi-faced policy, reflect the true face of failure of the state of Afghanistan under the leadership of Hamid Karzai.
The presidential system in Afghanistan, with weak management of its leadership, in the absence of a qualified, compassionate and competent team that could have been in control of the affairs of state, has not produced desired results.
As a result of all these, the totality of society is in a deep crisis, the political system has changed into a corrupt and bureaucratic organization, security is disrupted, and desperate terrorist individuals have found another opportunity to organize and take control of a lot of places. Foreign relations with some of the neighboring and regional countries have weakened and in some instances taken a nose dive. The economy has hit a roadblock and is in the throes of a transition chaos. And there are now serious problems in the sectors of education, health services, women and youth affairs, culture, human rights, returnees’ affairs, public welfare and environment.
I can say for certain that the current political, social and economic atmosphere in Afghanistan is neither acceptable to the international community nor to the Afghan people.
But, today, there is once again the opportunity to elect the state leadership. Today, once more, the people of Afghanistan are demonstrating their national will, through an informed, enthusiastic and united presence in the election campaign, for choosing their destiny and for creating change. Without any doubt and consideration, our country needs positive changes in many dimensions. It is only with these changes that one can generate hope in the hearts of the people of Afghanistan. “Change and Hope” will transform mistrust to trust, dissent to unity, backwardness to progress, and discrimination to social justice!
As a candidate for the presidency of Afghanistan, I have given my beloved people and country the promise of “Change and Hope”. With the wish of gaining people’s trust, below, I present the key components of my government’s policies:
1. Political System
To arrange for people’s participation and build a healthy government and administration, Afghanistan’s political system must be changed. This change must ensure people’s participation in their political and social lives all over the country and prepare the requisite conditions for building and consolidating a modern and durable state based on public support. The current presidential system has shown that it lacks capability and effectiveness in both areas of shaping a responsive government and mobilizing people’s participation. We present our program for shaping and securing a modern, durable and responsive state in the following manner:
1- Placing emphasis on building a system with a moderate Islamic philosophy, and strengthening democracy as a means of choosing a system of government and its executives in the framework of the values of the Constitution;
2- Bringing change in the structure of the political system, distributing political power and ensuring political participation based on the principle of a decentralized system by establishing a parliamentary/premiership system instead of a presidential system, through legal means;
3- Electing provincial governors and district chiefs by local people, based on a proposal from provincial councils and the approval of the president;
4- Supporting the mixed electoral system (based on party and individual) for preparing the ground in forming nationally inclusive political parties and as a means for making the Parliament more effective;
5- Establishing the Independent Commission to supervise the implementation of the Constitution; and
6- Creating trust between the people and attaining state legitimacy by holding transparent and just elections via:
a. Making sure that the National Election Commission has a nationally inclusive composition, with its members representing the state, political parties and civil society, while paying attention to ethnic and gender balance;
b. Appointment of its central members by a vote of the parliament;
c. Insuring its budget by the Parliament and its accountability to the Parliament;
d. Strengthening of the national and international oversight of the election process; and
e. Correct census of the country and distribution of a national identity card based on sex, ethnic group, language, province, district and village.
2. Ensuring Security and Fighting Terrorism
The overall security policies of our government are as follows:
1- Presenting a specific definition of national security of Afghanistan, which will include the salient points of our doctrine of state of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the most important aspects of ensuring security, in its general and particular sense, in the framework of a truly designed implementation;
2- Emphasizing the fact that the security issue as a multi-dimensional issue is related to economy, culture, politics and diplomacy;
3- Insistence on strengthening the defense and security forces of the country with a view towards acquiring the strength to eventually independently defend and ensure security and stability;
4- Insistence on talking with the Taliban and armed opposition groups of the government and looking for a resolution of the problem within the framework of citizen’s rights and obligations accepted in the Constitution;
5- Fighting terrorism with coordination and understanding with neighbors and the international community and design of a clear and practical strategy;
6- Establishing material and spiritual privileges for the victims of war and families of martyrs, crippled and invalids;
7- Establishing tight coordination between national and foreign forces to prevent civilian casualties and become more effective;
8- Serious and continual fight against groups supporting terrorism in the region;
9- Giving importance to arriving at regional security agreements;
10- Strengthening the role of national security council of Afghanistan and establishing a center for strategic and security studies;
11- Designing inspirational programs to increase morale in the military and security forces, in the framework of national and Islamic values. And studying replacement systems of replenishing the armed forces (e.g., conscription system);
12- Giving assurances to neighboring and regional countries that presence of international forces in Afghanistan is not a threat to their security;
13- Role of people in insuring security by means of increasing local capacity and attracting professional and expert talent in the defense and security forces;
14- Utilizing to advantage the rich experience of Mujaheddin in the defense and security systems of the country;
15- Studying once again the physical positioning of indigenous and foreign forces, settling them in key places outside the cities and in terrorists’ resupply routes; and
16- Afghanization of resolution of security issues by increasing the coordination between the commander of joint chiefs and the Coalition forces, and increasing professional skill levels of the armed and security leadership, in order to effectively resolve security problems and increase people’s role in support of military policies.
3. Fighting against Government Corruption
We consider fighting against government corruption as one of our religious obligations as well as a national commitment. The causes of government corruption are essentially rooted in the structure and management of the presidential system in Afghanistan.
As regards government corruption, our government will pay attention to the following points:
1- Separating the three branches of the state, respecting the separation, and creating a government that is responsible and responsive;
2- Dissolving similar administrations in charge of fighting corruption and strengthening a single administration that is independent, capable and responsive;
3- Improving the livelihood of civil servants with creation of effective and practical programs;
4- Direct oversight by the president himself of the agency for fight against government corruption and implementation of the principle of reward and punishment;
5- Devising special regulations that would prevent the exit of national investments from the country and pursuit of those breaking the law;
6- Respecting and following the principle of creating job security, in governmental and non-governmental organizations, by referring as much as possible to labor laws;
7- Separation of appointed ranks from the civil service tract in the state employment structure;
8- Establishing balance in the monthly and privileged salaries;
9- Emphasis on uniformly implementing laws in order to prevent corruption; and
10- Encouraging local and foreign investment and expanding government economic structures in order to create jobs, especially job variety and decreasing joblessness.
4. Ensuring National Unity
The overall policies of our state regarding national unity will be as follows:
1- Understanding the fact that relying on and referring to Islam as the axis of unity and togetherness among the majority of the country’s inhabitants is the basis of country-wide unity;
2- Ensuring national unity based on social justice, respecting civil and citizens’ rights, and preparing conditions for participation of all the peoples of Afghanistan in the structure of the future political system, with amending the structure of the political system both vertically and horizontally;
3- Ensuring conditions for political, economic, scientific and cultural participation of all the people based on the merit principle;
4- Balanced development of provinces with attention to proportionate conditions for economic infrastructure such as electricity and roads;
5- Supporting local and general media to help cultural evolution and understanding the identity of Afghanistan’s inhabitants;
6- Acknowledging the principle of cultural diversity of Afghanistan (languages, sects, ethnic groups) and respecting it in official documents and national calendar;
7- Negotiating and reaching agreements with forces opposed to the state for ensuring an all-over peace based on national and Islamic values and respect for the Constitution;
8- Preparing equal opportunities for all citizens in areas such as work and education;
9- Developing connecting and communication networks in the country; and
10- Improving the quality of educational curriculum with a view towards diversity acknowledgement and awareness.
5. Fighting Narcotics
Planting, producing and trafficking of narcotics is one of the serious threats facing security in Afghanistan and the world. Narcotics are one of the basic sources of
financing the war and terrorist activities in Afghanistan. Noting the extensiveness of narcotics trade and trafficking networks and noting the various reasons for planting and producing of drugs in Afghanistan, the fight to eradicate production and trade of drugs is a difficult and multi-dimensional fight. Without effective fight against poverty and backwardness, without development of agriculture, without establishment of a healthy and responsive government, without strengthening legal economy, and without a transparent policy and clear strategy for the cooperation of our neighbors, regional countries and the world, this fight will not reach victory.
Our government’s program in the area of drugs and narcotics is based on the following:
1- Control and consolidation of borders;
2- Direct support of farmers in the area of substitute crop;
3- Encouragement of religious scholars to talk about prohibition of growth, trade and use of narcotics;
4- Attracting international support to preve
nt import of precursor drugs for producing narcotics, into Afghanistan;
5- Prosecuting, suing and applying harsh punishment to known national and international drug traffickers;
6- Placing national and international forces in the country’s airports and international borders;
7- Unifying all agencies working on the fight against drugs; and
8- Making more efforts in attending to drug addicts.
6. Foreign Relations
Our foreign relations will be active, realistic, just and based on Afghanistan’s mutual respect and interests with neighboring countries, the region and the world. Thus, our government will seriously pay attention to the participation of neighbors and the region, in the stability and reconstruction of Afghanistan.
The overall policies of our government in this area will be as follows:
1- Consolidation and preservation of balance in the regional and international relations based on national interests of Afghanistan;
2- Extending good relations based on mutual respect with neighbors and the Islamic countries;
3- Acquiring international assurances for permanent stability of Afghanistan;
4- Designing an active and moderate regional diplomacy; strengthening regional cooperation and its major themes; reestablishing Afghanistan’s historical position as a center of cultural, commercial and economic exchange; defining and establishing Afghanistan’s current place in the regional and world relations;
5- Strengthening the role of Afghanistan, with its active presence, in regional organizations;
6- Respecting and abiding by international conventions and other agreements that Afghanistan is a signatory to.
7- Extending cultural and training exchanges between Afghanistan and other countries of the world while respecting each other’s religious principles, in order to prevent the spread of cultural and religious misunderstandings;
8- Reviewing the national policy for international assistance in order to make it more effective; and developing mutual and transparent accountability;
9- Starting a national debate over Afghanistan’s neutrality;
10- Continuing Afghanistan’s commitment with the international community to
fight terrorism and narcotics; and
11- Emphasizing the expansion of the role of the United Nations and the
Organization of the Islamic Countries in Afghanistan.
7. Justice and Judicial Affairs
Reform in the justice and judicial system will be one of the priorities of our government. The judiciary is the place of justice and without justice trust and stability in society cannot be achieved. Presence of corruption in the judicial administration has eroded people’s confidence in the state.
The principal lines of our program in this area are as follows:
1- Emphasis on ensuring independence of the judiciary;
2- Equipping judges with Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) and legal knowledge; training legal staff in jurisprudence and law with a view towards practices at the national and international levels;
3- Increasing the living standards of judges by raising their salary and providing housing for them;
4- Resolute campaign against bribery and corruption;
5- Basic change in simplifying the judicial process, which will both quantifiably expedite processing of legal, civil and criminal cases, and qualitatively – procedurally – ensure the rule of law;
6- Setting timetable for rulings of a civil case and transparency of legal reasoning which forms the basis of a case so that the two sides of a case are free from uncertainty and run-around;
7- Reviewing as to what courts to eliminate and which ones to create;
8- Reform in the prosecution system in order to create transparency in the criminal files;
9- Prison reform in the capital as well as in the provinces;
10- Creating ease of access by means of increasing court buildings;
11- Establishing a public information system for legal and judicial matters;
12- Ensuring the right to defend for the accused and to have a defense attorney; and
13- Reaching an understanding and agreement with the United States of America for Afghans themselves to accept, keep and guard Afghan prisoners.
8. The Economy
For government to effectively and efficiently play its role in the area of the growth of market economic system, my government will implement the following reforms:
1- Correcting existing and enacting new laws and regulations; oversight of their
implementation, in consultation and coordination with the private sector;
2- Providing an enabling environment, encouraging and supporting local and foreign investments;
3- Paying special attention to ensuring security and safety of private properties and correcting laws related to property and facilitating the establishment of insurance companies;
4- Supporting rights and benefits of the vulnerable users, monitoring natural and real supply and demand process in the market by establishing a relevant office;
5- Controlling the quality of goods and services in the market and establishing standards for goods and services in order to prevent the entry of low quality and non-standard goods into the market;
6- Monitoring market activities( competition, monopoly, embezzlement, goods quality, etc.) and undertaking necessary measures against them;
7- Interference in the market and areas where the private sector is not willing to invest;
8- Providing enabling environment for the activities of local and foreign corporation enterprises inside and outside of the country by signing agreements and memorandums of understanding between and among the governments and oversight of their implementation;
9- Commercialization of those governmental enterprises that reach sustainability by little attention and small investment;
10- Gradual assignment of non-productive government enterprises to private sector based on a transparent plan;
11- Collecting taxes and customs duties from the private sector activities on a regular basis and transparently reporting to the public about it;
12- Establishing and strengthening government agencies and offices including courts in terms of implementing laws on lawbreakers; and
13- Removing the big gap between the rich minority and poor majority, and fighting against economic mafia.
Taking into account the above-mentioned, in order to improve the efficiency and
effectiveness of the market economy, the focus of my economic program will be
on the followings:
1- Accurate identification of the potential economic abilities of the country as pyramids of development and growth and using them effectively;
2- Design and implementation of short, medium, and long-term balanced and practical programs and construction and reconstruction of economic and developmental infrastructure of the country with giving priority to water, energy, and transport sectors by our own experts and with support from the international community;
3- Designing a program of national capacity building and intellectual and professional public empowerment;
4- Compensating of many years default in the mines, natural resources, agriculture and livestock sectors and paving the way for more focus on the sectors of services, urban development, the problem of housing and very bad situation of citizens in particular citizens of the capital and main cities;
5- Paying more attention to the effectiveness of international aid in the daily life of the people;
6- Comprehensive and sustainable rural and urban development and ensuring sustainable and palpable economic growth in the country;
7- Paving the way for balanced development in all parts of the country;
8- Preservation and effective use of national capital and natural resources of the country with ensuring the principle of transparency;
9- Encouraging and supporting local and foreign investments based on the principles of market economic system and objective realities of the society;
10-Crea
ting more jobs for jobless people and as a result raising their income level and life quality;
11-Using more women who constitute more than half of the country’s
population, in the workforce;
12-Reducing extreme poverty, which is more widespread in the cities, as well as rural areas; and
13- Raising the level of national revenues and gradual decrease of dependence on foreign assistance.
9. Industry
Our programs for developing industry emphasize the followings:
Designing and implementing a comprehensive policy of encouraging, supporting,
and strengthening domestic industries and products in the framework of which all
government and non-government entities are guided into one direction;
1- Design and implementation of policy to encourage, support and strengthening of internal industry and products so that all government and non-government organizations have the same direction;
2- Design and implementation of new custom tariffs policy of the country based on encouraging domestic industries and products and taking into consideration tariff policies of the regional commercial partners;
3- Fiscal exemption for factories and recently installed producing organizations for the next five to ten years;
4- Exempting all machineries and their complementary equipments and also raw materials of factories from any type of tariff and tax;
5- Providing factories with cheap and reliable electricity;
6- Encouraging and supporting the establishment of industrial and production parks equipped with necessary social services and ensuring their security;
7- Increasing custom tariffs of similar foreign products in order that the same domestic products can compete in the internal market;
8- Encouraging and supporting domestic and foreign investments in the mother industries sector such as metal melting factories, extract and refine of gas and oil, petro-chemical and plastic industries, factories of production of industrial, agricultural, and other types of machineries ;
9- Long-term selling and renting of land for the purpose of establishing factories and production establishments under transparent, cheap, and simple procedures and conditions;
10-Increasing domestic products through creating demand in the market by implementing developmental policies;
11-Supporting carpet–weaving industries as Afghan traditional handicrafts of the country and giving more incentives to those who are involved in this sector in the areas of investment, production, process, and export of their products;
12-Encouraging and supporting handicrafts and small industries such as wood-carving, needlework, leatherwork, copper work, goldsmith work, lithograph, painting and others;
13-Providing facilities for export of domestic products from the source to destination (regional and global markets) as a result of signing transit and commercial agreements with the regional countries under the encouraging and easy conditions;
14-Encouraging and supporting establishment of industrial development bank as a joint company between private sector( internal and external) and the government and granting long-term loans with lower interest rate to investors and producers;
15-Creating professional and technical educational institutions by government, donors, and private sector;
16-Simplification of administrative procedures, rules, and regulations related to investment, and establishing factories and productive establishments and supporting the system of One-Stop Shop for the purpose of accelerating the process and preventing loss of time and corruption;
17-Fighting against policies of establishing price gauging by external producers through diplomatic channels and signing binding bilateral agreements with neighboring and regional countries; and
18- Granting appreciation letters, medals, and incentive insignias to the best investors in order to encourage them morally, and providing enabling environment for producers to domestic raw materials with lower and incentive prices.
10. Commerce
In the commercial sector the following will be done:
1- Designing and implementation of commercial policies of the country based
on exchange of imports with domestic products and increase of exports;
2- Identification of important trade partners of the country in the region and globe for supplying important and strategic products and materials such as rice, sugar, ghee, oil, gas, construction materials, raw materials and others for the purpose of bringing the country out of the absolute dependence on one or more specific countries; and signing commercial and transit agreements with them, for the purpose of better coordination of customs and tariff related activities;
3- Supporting re-export to neighboring and regional countries through establishing and implementing appropriate tariff policy;
4- Supporting private sector related entities such as Commercial and Industrial
Chambers of Afghanistan and other sectoral associations and unions as government partners in drafting and designing of relevant policies, rules, and regulations and respecting their views and recommendations for solving the problems and challenges that have created obstacles and bottlenecks in the way of development of commerce and enterprises in the country;
5- Fighting seriously and eliminating all types of extortions, levies, and bribe-takings in the customs offices, cities, and along the highways from traders;
6- Implementing simple and easy procedure of customs of commercial goods in the customs offices and ports as a result of which traders can import their goods without the loss of time and paying all types of taxes, tolls, and service charges in lump sum to government single account;
7- Exempting exports from all types of taxes and custom duties;
8- Equipping ports with refrigeration facilities, modern depots and storehouses, and modern equipment of loading and unloading of goods; and preventing crossing smuggled goods across the borders through establishing security posts and simplification of customs procedures at appropriate points;
9- Strengthening Norm and Standard Authority in the country for strict control of the quality of imports through establishing national norms and standards for goods and services and implementing them in the ports with the establishment of modern laboratories there;
10-Implementing national surveys for the purpose of getting more accurate data in terms of annual needs of the people for important and strategic commodities such as foodstuff in particular wheat and fuel and undertaking strict safety measures for supply of these goods in cases of crisis, closing of highways and roads, decrease of supply and rapid increase of prices in the market;
11-Strengthening of Central Statistics Office for the purpose of collecting data related to export and import goods and using it in drafting commercial policy-making process;
12-Making an effort for finding more markets for domestic agricultural products in the foreign markets and holding agricultural shows inside and outside the country;
13-Paying serious attention to the effective and active role of Afghanistan in the regional and international economic and trade organizations;
14-Establishing an investment fund for providing private entrepreneurs with short-term and medium-term loans;
15-Creating facility and ease to promote commerce by way:
a. Ensuring security in the country in particular along the highways;
b. Reconstruction and construction of all highways and ring and connecting roads that connect the country to the neighboring countries;
c. Connecting the railway of Hairatan-Islam Qala,Torghondi-Chaman,
and Torkham-Hairatan-Sherkhan Bandar;
d. Making better the quality of hotel management, services, traffic police and municipal services in all bolder cities and cities along the highways of the country;
e. Joining Afghanistan to the International Transport and Transit Organization (TIR); and
f. Encoura
ging private investments in the area of transport and transit insurance services.
11. Development
Review of the present Afghanistan National Development Strategy in its different aspects and adjusting its impractical programs/projects into practical activities that will accommodate with the objective realities of Afghan society. Establishment of a unified center for design, monitoring, and evaluation of development plans in Afghanistan and assigning it in identification of the main obstacles and bottlenecks for economic growth, and making preparations for medium-term review and then drafting second Afghanistan National Development Strategy for 1392-1397.
The priorities of this strategy will be irrigation, mines exploitation, agriculture, livestock, and strengthening other infrastructures and productive forces of Afghanistan and this will be drafted with close consultation with the administrative and elected entities at sub-national, provincial, district, private sector, and civil society levels.
My government will focus on the following projects/programs for the development of different areas of life of the people and country:
1- Water:
a. Establishment of central authority of water management for the purpose of creating more coordination, responsibility, and preventing existing fragmentation among water-related sectors;
b. Educating experienced experts and cadres and getting accurate information in terms of existing water resources in the country;
c. Correct identification of water needs of Afghanistan in different sectors( especially, agriculture, energy, urban and rural development) and making prioritization;
d. Starting gradual and continuous negotiations on common waters with the neighboring countries and paving the way for effective use of Afghanistan’s legal right of these waters;
e. Designing programs for controlling surface waters and using underground waters and their distribution network for the use of different sectors;
f. Taking serious decisions in terms of consolidation of banks of important rivers of the country and constructing tens of small and medium irrigation dams; and
g. Building small and medium size irrigation dams.
2- Energy
a. Undertaking needs assessments in the energy sector;
b. Paying special attention to production of cheap and reliable electricity through water, thermal and renewable resources such as solar and wind electricity (in particular in remote and central parts of the country);
c. Using gas and oil and constructing their distribution pipelines and networks in different provinces; and
d. Preventing loss of tax income related to energy and electricity, and rapid increase in the production and distribution of electricity, gradual decrease in its importation, and finally preparing the country for its export and gaining income on this.
3- Transport
a. By undertaking an active and innovative diplomacy, we will change commercial and transit infrastructures of Afghanistan (in particular ring roads and connecting roads to neighboring countries and railway network in the future) into safe regional and global assets. Enhancing these roads into four-line and equipped highways taking into account the volume of transit of related commodities of the regional countries, by these countries and in strategic partnership with Afghanistan;
b. Paying more attention to connecting villages to highways by way of secondary and tertiary roads;
c. Construction of small airstrips in remote and mountainous areas;
d. Paying more attention to Ariana Airlines and providing more facilities for nascent private airlines in order to enable them to compete in a free and competitive environment; and
e. Organizing and increasing the quality and quantity of public transportation networks in different cities of the country.
4- Mines
a. Ensuring security and control of those areas in which mines are located;
b. Accelerating the process of survey of identification and registration of natural resources;
c. Predicting internal needs of the country, designing a long-term program for effective use of these resources and identification of surplus and additional resources;
d. Constructing necessary infrastructure for the extraction and exploitation of mines such as constructing roads, electricity and others taking into account the economic potential of the country and the importance of the mines;
e. Simplification and making transparent the process of assignment( bidding and tendering) of mines to internal and external private sector;
f. Capacity building of Afghanistan in the process of procurement of tenders of mines and their related contracts;
g. Preventing extracting and trafficking of mineral resources and mines by illegal individuals and groups;
h. Making amendments to the mine laws of the country to encourage more investment – both local and foreign;
i. Fixing real and incentive prices of royalty of mines;
j. Giving priority to the extraction and exploitation of gas and oil reserves, and mines of ore, copper, marble, chromites and precious stones;
k. Providing facilities for export of precious stones; and
l. Constructing metal melting machineries in the country and strengthening heavy and light industries.
12. Agriculture and Livestock
Currently, less than 40% of the arable land is being used, with most of our water resources not being effectively utilized.
With regard to the agricultural priority in the area of development and progress, the main objectives of our government program are: Reducing poverty, ensuring food security, attaining self-sufficiency in basic food products, and improving the economic base of farmers and herdsmen.
Our strategy for achieving the above goals is: Expanding the acreage of arable land, improving the quantity and quality of agricultural and livestock products; and
creating incentives for growth and progress of the agricultural and livestock sectors.
The following programs will help us achieve the strategy:
1- Improving the irrigation systems and build dams for cultivation of arid lands and maximum use of the cultivated lands;
2- Making maximum use of water resources including introducing drip irrigation and other new systems;
3- Increasing the productivity level of dairy products and other animal products, and processing in the country by encouraging private entrepreneurs in order to reduce imports from abroad;
4- Expanding livestock services, such as improving animal breeding and attention to animal health;
5- Transfer of new technology for the farming community and converting traditional methods to modern and mechanical agriculture;
6- Establishing and revitalizing centers for servicing and promoting agriculture, expanding agricultural and livestock research throughout the country;
7- Introducing plant and animal varieties with high yield and high tolerance to disease, and launching disease eradication programs;
8- Restoration of the agricultural bank and establishing “good lending” funds to improve farmers’ economy;
9- Developing an appropriate crop substitute for poppy cultivation and supporting it with funds to farmers;
10-Reviving, protecting and expanding pasturelands, industrial and natural forests, with the participation of the local people, developing new industrial and commercial forests, expanding the green environment, and protecting the environment;
11-Expanding a modern orchard system for raising export of fruits by creating post-producing facilities, processing, store-houses, and broad marketing inside the country and abroad;
12-Establishing factories for preparing cultivation aides, such as fertilizers and insecticides;
13-Encouraging the private sector to build large agricultural farms;
14-Creating and standardizing the quarantine system to control quality of food products;
15-Preparing and distributing planting seeds and fertilizers;
16-Giving tax exemption to exports of al
l agricultural and fruit products and creating policies for protecting farmers and herdsmen against import of products existing in the country
17-Encouraging and supporting establishment of agricultural and livestock cooperatives throughout the country and supplying farmers with facilities and incentive subsidies for cheaper and easier productivity;
18-Locating and registering state lands and leasing them to those interested in investing through a well-planned and transparent program;
19-Settling issues deriving from land disputes;
20-Establishing food silo and depots for emergency purposes throughout the country; and
21-Building refrigerated houses in border areas, major cities and provinces which produce large quantities of fruit products.
13. Rural Development
Our plans in this area are as follows:
1- Design and implementation of balanced economic development plans in the city and the village;
2- Careful selection of rural projects with a view towards effectiveness and longevity;
3- Giving priority to development projects in the fourteen thousand villages that for a variety of reasons have not yet received any help;
4- Seriously attempting to reduce cost of existing projects and starting new projects with the savings;
5- Basic investment in building roads and bridges in the rural areas so the inhabitants can reach markets, educational centers, and other services;
6- Design and implementation of projects to increase vocational-professional skills and cheap and durable systems so people can do the right upkeep of roads and other infrastructure;
7- Building small irrigation projects to increase agricultural output;
8- Building water reservoirs for clean potable water in the villages;
9- Preparing conditions to build on reusable energy;
10-Assisting in the traditional cottage industry with private investment; and
11- Encouraging and supporting traditional livestock and animal husbandry for families and villages, upkeep of pastures and access to veterinary services.
14. Education
Despite remarkable developments in increasing quantity in primary, secondary and higher education during the last seven years, no serious step has been taken in the these areas:
1) Raising quality in primary, secondary and higher education,
2) Strengthening and expanding technical and vocational education, and
3) Establishing closeness and cooperation between the ministries of education and higher education
In addition to the above areas, our government’s program will also include the implementation of the followings:
1- Designing and implementing a joint strategy for the two ministries in teacher training and reviewing and possibly re-structuring the programs of the two-year teacher training colleges and the four-year faculties of education;
2- Strengthening the professional knowledge of teachers through offering courses and in-service programs at universities inside the country and abroad;
3- Building new schools and teaching literacy in remote and impoverished parts of the country;
4- Effective use of new distance learning technology for teaching and transfer of knowledge and skills;
5- Providing an atmosphere of security, tranquility and friendliness in all schools, madrasas, and universities in the country;
6- Increasing and expanding girls’ schools and literacy for illiterate women;
7- Eliminating violence and the language and culture of violence, with ethnic, language, and religious discriminations;
8- Increasing salaries and other benefits of school and higher education teachers;
9- Increasing opportunities for youth to study both locally and abroad; and
10-Professional and useful oversight of private schools and standardizing their curriculum.
Projects and Strategies
1- Establishing National Education Commission:
This commission will consist of distinguished Afghan and UNESCO education experts. The commission will have a significant consultative role in introducing the following reforms:
a. The Commission, with the cooperation of the two ministries, will embark on a complete evaluation of quality of education in schools and institutions of
higher education. It will design and apply modern and scientific methods for raising quality standards of education in different areas of education, such as raising the professional knowledge of teachers, updating methodology of teaching, upgrading curricula and laboratories, etc. This plan will be prepared during the first six months of our government and its implementation will begin during the next six months of the year.
b. The Commission will also review and revise the laws, bylaws, policies and procedures of the two ministries according to the Constitution of the country and education standards of the developed countries in the region and the world.
c. The Commission will embark on drafting an inclusive education law to cover pre-school education, primary and secondary and tertiary education, including private education. In the drafting new legislation for education, Afghan education experts, with those from UNESCO and UNICEF, will work together to compare different models, which have produced positive results, while upgrading our education laws and policies
d. The commission will present a new and important proposal to create more closeness and cooperation between the two Ministries of Education and Higher Education, especially in the area of teacher training, professional and technical education and preparing a new design for continuing education of high school graduates.
2- Increasing Technical and Professional Training in Education
a. According to this plan, in the first three years of our government, twenty percent of the graduating ninth graders will enter technical and professional schools (today only four percent of our students do so while in the more developed countries and even in the Western countries this figure is more than thirty and even fifty percent).
b. In those same three years, in each province, a few schools and high schools will change to the technical and professional schools, and based on the need, new such schools will start.
c. During the last two years of our government, the ratio of students graduating from these schools will reach thirty percent and in the following five years this figure will be closer to fifty.
d. Based on the country’s needs, technical and vocational education will be re-structured into three-year, five-year and university-level periods. Proper and effective implementation of this plan will have the following benefits:
1) Creating work for the youth in producing sectors;
2) Meeting technical and vocational needs of the country;
3) Fast, continuing, and balanced growth of the economy through increased productivity; and
4) Recruitment of a large percentage of high school graduates.
e. In order to strengthen cadres for technical and vocational schools, raise the quality of technical and vocational education, and skills, and create grounds and facilities for research in the areas of science and technology, our government, during the first three years, will not only strengthen the faculties of engineering and sciences of universities in the country, it will also establish new technical institutions in major cities in the country.
3 – Joint Plan of the Ministry of Education and Higher Education in Teacher Training:
a. The commission, with the help of the two ministries, will prepare a national teacher training strategy on the basis of which the two-year teacher training colleges of the Ministry of Education and the four-year faculties of education of the Ministry of Higher Education can cooperate and respond to the needs of the country in training qualified teachers for schools;
b. Kabul Education University will be strengthened to provide leadership in teacher education and training;
c. Ten percent of 12 graders will be enrolled at the two-year teacher training colleges
;
d. Five percent of the 12 graders will be enrolled at the religious two-year teacher training colleges; and
e. Voluntary recruitment of those left out of the university entrance exam, to become teachers and trainers in the life sciences (a part of the literacy program).
4– Kindergartens and Special Education:
a. Building public and private kindergartens at work places, secure residential places, at the vicinity of schools and offices (public and private) not only prepare children for school education, they also provide useful job opportunities for women. A large number of them can work at these kindergartens, some of which can be privatized with the participation of the private sector.
b. Education is one of the basic rights of all children in the country. Our government will prepare useful and distinct plans special educational plans for children with disability.
5 – Foundation Studies program:
High school graduates entering higher education institutions have major academic gaps. They need a six-month or one-year preparatory program to strengthen their knowledge foundations and make the right decision in choosing their major fields before entering the bachelor program. Because of these gaps, during the first year and even second year, many students change their fields or transfer from one institution to another, thus causing a great deal of inconvenience to the Ministry of Higher Education and their institutions. For this and other reasons, a preparatory period of six months or even one year is needed. This plan can produce a major development in the quality of education in the country.
6 – Reducing Government Control on Higher Education Institutions
Afghanistan’s higher education system is probably the most outdated system in the world. Without bringing fundamental reforms to this system, it would be difficult to create major changes in the government and society.
In many developed countries, universities have taken important steps toward academic freedom and institutional autonomy, but in Afghanistan the old tradition of government control over the higher education institutions is continuing relentlessly. The above-mentioned will prepare a plan in reducing government control over institutions of higher education. Making university presidents and department chairmen elective will be one of the results.
15. Health
Our government’s priorities for the next five years will be to:
1- Increasing the proportion of the budget allocated to the health sector;
2- Introducing cost sharing initiatives to improve the quality of care;
3- Increasing the number of qualified female medical staff;
4- Ensuring full coverage of basic health services;
5- Implementing innovative initiatives so that no child is left out from the immunization program;
6- Eliminating contagious diseases and pay special attention to eradicating polio and malaria;
7- Planning and implementing country-wide programs to prevent and control those diseases like HIV/AIDS before they become a serious problem;
8- Paying special attention to health education programs by incorporating health massages into school curricula, utilizing mass media, involving religious leaders in the mosques, motivating Community Health Workers;
9- Improving the access and quality of basic health services in remote areas by offering Community Health Workers bonuses and benefits;
10-Paying particular attention to improving the quality of hospital care;
11-Establishing specialized hospitals in the capital and regions to reduce the referral off the patients to abroad;
12-Providing specialized training opportunities and higher medical studies for medical personnel;
13-Providing opportunities for specialized work for foreign medical personnel in order to make treatment inside the country easier;
14-Performing meticulous monitoring and evaluation of the operations of the private for-profit and not-for-profit institutions including pharmacies, hospitals, clinics, medical training centers in order to ensure high quality of services and avoid the escalation of medical costs; and
15- Improving the quality control of food and drug.
16. Women’s Affairs
Considering women’s grave problems and following Islam’s teachings on women’s rights, our program for women will include the followings:
1- Emphasizing by religious scholars the high position of woman as mother in Islam;
2- Reviewing and defining of, the mission of the Ministry of Women’s Affairs (at present, the mission of the Ministry is defined as policy maker, while actions and execution in relation to women’s affairs towards building needed capacities are urgently required for women’s growth.)
3- Reviewing of women’s sections of the important and all-inclusive projects of Afghanistan in order to ensure and/or incorporate a commensurate role and share of women in society. These projects are:
o UN’s Millennium Development Goals (as applied in Afghanistan),
o The Afghanistan Compact,
o Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS), and
o National Action Plan for Women of Afghanistan (NAPWA).
4- Truly including the principle of preferential treatment (affirmative action) for women in the regulations of the Administrative Reform Commission;
designing programs to better attract educated and experienced women; preparing appropriate programs for women to take more and active part in the high level policy formulation and strategy development. Also preparing opportunities for women’s employment in different levels of management in the capital and provinces;
5- Increasing the share of women in the decision making levels;
6- Seriously prosecuting perpetrators of violence and crimes against women (including trafficking and rape), and punishing them;
7- Serious attention to change the situation of rural women with design of specific programs for their needs; utilizing the capacities and capabilities of the educated, urban women in this area;
8- Establishing necessary facilities to increase and build self-earning capacities for women in all areas of social affairs; preparing opportunities especially for widows and women with disabilities;
9- Design and implementation of protection policies for widows, women with disabilities, female addicts and deprived women, with cooperation of international institutions and the private sector;
10- Design of practical programs which will better prepare women’s access to the judicial process. Because women are often victimized by both official and oral (traditional) systems of justice, we are determined to improve both of these. For example, streamlining those decisions of tribal jirgas (councils) that negatively affect women to prevent making sacrificing women;
11-Engaging actively against those unwelcome traditions and mores that are contrary to the Islamic spirit and lower the status of women in society (with utilizing the mosque pulpits and also civil and social society);
12-Expanding education and learning opportunities for girls by means of building more schools and expanding literacy programs by means of employing girls and women who have graduated from high schools;
13-Attention to health issues, especially mother and infant mortality rate, and developing more access to healthcare facilities in a balanced way (in all provinces);
14-Design and implementation of programs which include information on the teachings of Islam, Shariat, law, rights and fighting against violence; and
15-Establishing the environment of research and survey regarding women’s state and condition in areas where they are faced with more violence and discrimination; attention to women’s views regarding their role solving family and other issues, and taking advantage of women’s effective role in conflict resolution in the family and society.
17. Youth Affairs
Our government, which repeats the slogan of cha
nge and peace, and investment in the new energy, will honestly and seriously pay attention to the youth and the new generation, and will develop and implement a national and all-inclusive strategy that will include the followings:
1- Establishing and strengthening educational and scientific institutions, and increasing their acceptance levels, standardizing educational programs;
2- Designing general programs that would provide employment opportunities for the youth in the public and private sectors;
3- Programs that would help the youth to develop their professional, technical and trades skills in different areas;
4- Providing educational scholarships, based on the country’s needs, for them to study in different countries;
5- Building and providing leisure and sports arenas all over the country;
6- Providing opportunities for the youth to participate in political, cultural, social and reconstruction areas;
7- Helping them to curb extravagance in marriage mores and thereby helping them to plan for forming a family; and
8- Paying attention to the youth who for a variety of reasons are not literate and have not been able to pursue schooling.
18. Administrative Reform (Good Governance)
We will begin the principles of desired governance from the rule of law, ensuring security, continual fight against widespread corruption, in all its facets. Our program in the area of administrative reform will include the following:
1- Ensuring people’s participation in the government’s decision making process by means of popularizing elections;
2- Establishing a system of confidence to ensure social justice at the level of government administration;
3- Establishing a transparent mechanism of employment and recruitment based on merit and justice;
4- Job security in the framework of public administration as a means of ensuring the rights after employment of civil servants and workers of NGO’s;
5- Strengthening and giving proper direction to the administrative reform with the aim of change;
6- Establishing accountable, transparent and effective civil services;
7- Respecting gender justice (ensuring men and women’s large scale participation in the civil services);
8- Review of laws and regulations concerning administrative reform; and
9- Review and amendment of administrative laws of the country.
19. Cultural Affairs
The general plans of our government in cultural affairs consist of the followings:
1- Protection, preservation, repair and reconstruction of our historical monuments and antiquities including religious places and old cities, renovation of old and construction of new museums; and expanding archaeological research in order to understand the ancient civilizations of our country;
2- Promoting the culture of study among the people through printing books and establishing libraries (mobile too) in cities and rural areas;
3- Encouraging the writing of the history of Afghanistan in an objective and scholarly manner;
4- Drawing attention to fine arts and fostering creative talents in fine arts by establishing and strengthening arts galleries and arts institutes;
5- Defending and supporting requests from cultural institutions of Afghan citizens inside and outside Afghanistan as they relate to growth of our great cultural heritage;
6- Protection of the country’s media within a legal framework and differentiating the concept of democracy from chaotic and irresponsible behavior;
7- Celebration and glorification of the prominent intellectual position of scholars, thinkers and creators of ideas;
8- Protecting the rights of publishers, compilers, translators, writers and producers of intellectual, scientific, cultural and artistic works;
9- Safeguarding the legacy of martyrs, defenders of the land; protecting the families of the martyrs and the wounded, and establishing the Foundation of Martyrs and the Disabled;
10-Manifesting the historical and cultural symbols of different ethnic groups residing in the land in our national currencies, state documents, national encyclopedias published by the state, advertisements, publicities, etc.;
11-Refraining from extremism, strengthening and institutionalizing the culture of moderation in all affairs of social life;
12-Avoiding excessive expenses and ceremonies for festive or sad occasions;
Working towards introducing and returning to the country stolen antiquities with the help of UNESCO and other international organizations;
13-Preparing proper conditions of living for returning scholars and experts; and
14-Serious attention to the youth’s sports movement and continual oversight of sports and health authorities in order for the athletes to thrive in their chosen endeavors, and ensuring participation in the international sports events including the Olympics.
20. Democracy and Securing Human Rights
The general plans of our government in the area of democracy will consist of the followings:
1- Expansion of the culture of democracy as a top-down method of governance, protection of the rights of citizens, and social justice;
2- Emphasis on freedom of expression and freedom of the media;
3- Support for expansion of the culture of tolerance, non-violence, open-mindedness towards others’ ideas and perspectives, through scientific, intellectual and educational programs;
4- Respect for human rights according to the articles of the Constitution;
5- Support of the human rights, particularly the rights of women and children;
6- Registering language, racial and religious discriminations as a crime; and
7- Amending the Constitution through a legal process for the purpose of further reinforcement of democracy.
21. Refugee and Returnee Affairs
Our government’s program on refugees living abroad, the internally displaced people and returnees consists of:
1- Reviewing the responsibilities and activities of the various offices of the refugees’ affairs – especially those in host countries – in coordination with the UN refugees’ organizations for the purpose of reducing problems of the refugees and defending their rights;
2- Defending the rights of refugees in accordance with international conventions and human rights;
3- Maximum use of the expertise of immigrants and returnees for the purpose of developing and modernizing the country;
4- UNHCR should make serious efforts in providing facilities, in consultation with the Afghan government, for resettlement of refugees in their birthplaces in the country;
5- Dealing with the basic problems of returnees who are settled in cities without any plan;
6- Providing work for returnees and settling their legal claims after settlement;
7- Preventing intentional demographic changes in areas where the returnees are resettled;
8- Helping the internally displaced people, who, for different reasons, were driven out of their homes; and
9- Facilitating the returnees and immigrants living abroad to participate in the presidential election process.
22. Social Services and Public Welfare
In meeting social needs, we have set the following aims as our priorities:
1- General Points:
a. Developing an effective program for reducing poverty and unemployment;
b. Providing necessary conditions and opportunities for the poor and destitute to live their human life as a useful member of the society while safeguarding their basic human rights;
c. Setting up a retirement fund for the public and private sectors retirees;
d. Providing free health services; and
e. Setting up an insurance system.
2- Preparing a plan for families of martyrs and the disabled:
a. Distributing lands for reduced cost and affordable loans, which can help
build their homes;
b. Designing special learning and vocational programs to enable them to participate in social activities and work in the public and private sectors and tax reduction;
c. Ensu
ring easy conditions of work for them in the government offices families of martyrs;
d. Seeking income resources and providing other facilities for families who have lost their bread earners;
e. For protecting orphans and poor children in orphanages and nurseries, providing opportunities for education and other material and moral aids for them; and
f. Employing persons with disabilities themselves in positions and offices that work for such people.
3- Municipal Services:
a. Allowing municipalities to undertake their own responsibilities, and implementing municipality elections;
b. Better organization of the municipality tax system for strengthening
their financial base so that they can provide better city services;
c. Encouraging the spirit and culture good citizenship;
d. Designing new master plans for urban expansion;
e. Improving and expanding basic municipality services;
f. Improving the urban environment, cleaning and greening; and
g. Design and continuation of basic urban services to those areas that are
already built but are unofficial.
4- Social Services:
a. Creating necessary grounds and extensive infrastructures for developing information and communication services throughout the country;
b. Drawing attention to the tourism industry by maintaining security in cities, particularly in touristic sites, and advertising and promoting tourism in the ancient cities of the country via national and international media; and encouraging standard hotel and restaurant services for attracting and encouraging more tourists to visit the country; and
c. Drafting and implementing emergency plans for distributing essential aids, direct financial assistance for a definite period of time, providing long-term loans without interest while considering the financial potentiality of the government, and other technical and humanitarian assistance to victims of natural disasters.
23. Environment
Concerning the environment and its problems in Afghanistan, our program consists of the following points:
1- Developing a mechanism for protecting the entirety of the environment and improving its sustained use;
2- Maintaining coordination in environmental affairs on local, national and international levels;
3- Designing and implementing programs for integrating environmental affairs and methods for their sustained development on the national level;
4- Providing services related to the evaluation of environmental effects on development projects;
5- Controlling air quality, water, garbage, and pollutions;
6- Setting environmental standards while considering the country’s conditions; and
7- Providing better and more effective services in dealing with environmental issues.
