Country Update ISSUE 056 APR. 2020 “ WEE-RDP works to increase social and economic empowerment ” of poor rural women in all 34 provinces. page 29 page 4 page 6 page 38 page 40 world bank ongoing international afghanistan group support operations finance reconstruction corporation trust fund / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/3 CONTENTS ongoing 10 results NEW SUPPORT TO NEWS operations ‘Destitute families seize PRIVATE SECTOR world bank page 6-33 opportunity to make a living’ INVESTMENTS IN group support page 4 -5 page 6 AFGHANISTAN’S education and training ENERGY SECTOR page 4 World Bank projects and page 9 $52.5 MILLION IDA GRANT FOR THE programs financial sector AFGHANISTAN GAS PROJECT that will provide sustainable supply of natural International Finance page 16 gas to independent power producers Corporation health 28 results in northern Afghanistan. The project Multilateral Investment ‘Quality health services aims to support construction, opera- page 20 move closer to residents’ tion, and maintenance of a gas pipe- Guarantee Agency infrastructure line from Sheberghan to Mazar-e- Sharif and a new natural gas desul- page 5 page 24 furization amine plant. It also aims Country Partnership rural development to establish a strong institutional, regulatory, and contract management afghan peace: Framework, 2017-2020 page 33 framework based on the principles hopes and economic challenges ahead Afghanistan service delivery of good governance in the gas sector. A recent World Bank Afghanistan report, lasting peace in the country. Reconstruction Trust Fund However, recently improved reve- $12.8 MILLION IDA GUARANTEE TO "Navigating a Sea of Uncertainty", finds Japan Social page 36 30 results SUPPORT SHEBERGHAN-GAS-TO- that agricultural productivity increased nues reaching $2.5 billion per year and Development Fund urban development ‘Empowering rural women POWER PROJECT, which will support after Afghanistan began to recover from increased private sector activities, which to root out poverty’ the construction and operation of drought, helping the Afghan economy will improve employment and add new a greenfield 40 MW gas-to-power grow by nearly 2.9 percent in 2019. But revenues, will not be able to offset Af- plant utilizing indigenous gas from the report warns if uncertainty conti- ghanistan's dependence on foreign aid. Sheberghan gas fields in northwes- nues, it would discourage private sector It will continue to need international international finance tern Afghanistan. The new plant is corporation expected to contribute considerably confidence and investment. grants to finance its public expenditure page 38-39 As the Taliban enters intra-Afghan of nearly $11 billion per year. to increasing overall domestic energy peace talks after signing a peace agree- Another recently released World generation. page 38 ment with the United States, it will help Bank report, "Financing Peace", notes ongoing advisory projects $86 MILLION GUARANTEE TO remove most of the uncertainties and that Afghanistan will require $6 bil- SUPPORT MAZAR-E-SHARIF GAS-TO- push the country toward prosperity lion to $8 billion a year in international POWER PROJECT, which comprises if Afghans are able to cement a com- grants between 2020 and 2024 to fund results 52 a $12 million guarantee from IDA to prehensive peace agreement. basic services, support faster economic ‘High-density farming diversifies afghanistan backstop the ongoing payment obliga- The report notes that with the impacts growth, and consolidate and sustain any crops and boosts incomes’ reconstruction trust tion of Afghanistan’s power utility, Da of drought diminishing and private potential reduction in violence following fund Afghanistan Breshna Sherkat, $23.8 sector confidence improving, growth is a settlement with the Taliban. page 40-54 million senior loan and $1.5 million expected to accelerate to 3.3 percent in “The international community needs in client risk-management swap from 2020. Over the medium term, growth to maintain its support to Afghanistan page 42 the International Finance Corporation, is projected to hover around 4 percent, over the medium-term to sustain the ongoing projects and $48.7 million from the Multilate- providing that international aid support country’s recent development progress ral Investment Guarantee Agency as political risk insurance. continues and the security situation and help realize its long-term growth does not worsen. This indicates that the and self-reliance prospects,” said Henry Afghan economy would flourish if intra- Kerali, World Bank Country Director for Afghan peace talks pave the way for Afghanistan. 4/  Country Update/ / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/5 WORLD BANK GROUP SUPPORT COUNTRY PARTNERSHIP World Bank projects administration spheres, and through its reforms, for both public and private sectors, to strengthen the environment for private FRAMEWORK, donor partner contributions and guarantees while 15 projects are financed jointly with budget support operations. It has advo- as well as MIGA guarantees to provide an ini- IDA ($1.95 billion), with net commitment and programs cated building capacity and legitimacy of sector investment and promote private sec- 2017–2020 tial loss layer to insure investment projects in value of $2.44 billion. the state, and channeling donor resources tor–led growth. difficult contexts. This facility could be used to c For more information: see page 40. Since April 2002, the World Bank's Interna- through the government to ensure invest- IFC’s current cumulative committed invest- boost the agencies’ exposure in Afghanistan. The World Bank Group’s current tional Development Association (IDA) has ments are aligned with national priorities. ment portfolio stands at over $238 million committed over $4.70 billion for develop- To this end, the World Bank works closely and its advisory services portfolio stands engagement with Afghanistan Afghanistan Japan Social ment and emergency reconstruction pro- currently at $11.5 million. IFC’s investment over 2017–2020 is determined jects, and six budget support operations in with other multilateral and bilateral agen- cies across a number of sectors where aid portfolio includes investments in the tele- by the Country Partnership Fra- Reconstruction Development Fund Afghanistan. This support comprises over communication sector, agribusiness, and $4.26 billion in grants and $436.4 million coordination and government ownership are most critical. financial markets. The investment pipeline mework strategy, which is closely Trust Fund The Japan Social Development Fund (JSDF) in no-interest loans known as “credits”. The c For information about completed projects: looks promising and includes investments in aligned with the government’s was established by the Government of Japan Afghanistan National Peace and The Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund in 2000 as a means of supporting activities Bank has 11 active IDA-only projects ($879 www.worldbank.org.af – Projects & Programs. the power and education sectors. million) and 15 projects jointly funded with c For more information: see page 38. (ARTF) is a partnership between the inter- that directly respond to the needs of poor Development Framework. the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund, national community and the Government and vulnerable groups, enhance their capaci- with net commitment value of over $1.6 bil- International of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GoI- ties, and strengthen their empowerment and lion from IDA. Finance Corporation Multilateral The World Bank Group strategy RA) to improve effectiveness of the recons- participation in the development process. Since the adoption of the Afghanistan Investment aims to help Afghanistan: truction effort. As of February 28, 2020, 34 donors have contributed over $12.27 billion, The fund is administered by the World Bank. The Government of Japan and the World National Peace and Development Fra- The International Finance Corporation (IFC), • Build strong and accountable mework (ANPDF), the World Bank’s enga- the World Bank Group’s private sector arm, Guarantee Agency making the ARTF the largest contributor to Bank agreed to set up a special window wit- gement has become increasingly program- institutions to support the go- the Afghan budget—for both operating costs hin JSDF to support activities in Afghanistan is supporting economic development in matic. Underpinned by advisory work, both The Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agen- vernment’s state-building ob- and development programs. under a multi-year program of assistance for Afghanistan by providing a broad suite of cy (MIGA) has $116.5 million of gross expo- The ARTF’s support for National Priority the country’s reconstruction and transition to- policy and investment lending focus on investment services to the private sector, par- jectives and enable the state to the main engagement clusters: macro- sure for two projects in dairy and cashmere Programs, operating costs of government ward political, economic, and social stability. ticularly in the infrastructure, finance, agribu- fulfil its core mandate to deli- fiscal management and institution buil- production. operations, and the policy reform agenda As of January 2019, JSDF’s total commit- siness, and services sectors. ding, stimulating private investments and The investment program is supported by Among MIGA’s global priorities for FY ver basic services to its citizens, is contributing to the achievement of the ment had reached $85 million. A number of growth to create jobs, governance and advisory services, including access to finance, 2018–2021 are support for foreign direct in- and create an enabling environ- ANPDF goals. More than $5.7 billion has been JSDF-financed projects have been completed. anti-corruption, human capital develop- corporate governance enhancement, sup- vestment with high developmental impact in ment for the private sector; disbursed to the government to help cover c For more information: ment and service delivery, citizen engage- ply chain development, food safety mana- IDA countries and fragile and conflict affected recurrent costs, such as civil servants’ salaries, http://go.worldbank.org/U5OQZVF200 n • Support inclusive growth, with and over $5.7 billion had been made avai- ment and gender equality, as well as urba- gement, financial system management, situations. Afghanistan is a key country for nization, infrastructure, and connectivity. environmental and social management, MIGA to deliver on these objectives. a focus on lagging areas and ur- lable, both for closed and active investment The Bank has actively supported key re- strengthening horticulture export, access to In 2013, MIGA launched its “Conflict Affec- ban informal settlements; and projects. As of February 29, 2020 there are se- ted and Fragile Economies Facility” that uses ven active ARTF-only ($489 million) projects, forms, particularly in the fiscal and public renewable energy, and investment climate • Deepen social inclusion through improved human development outcomes and reduced vulnera- bility amongst the most under- privileged sections of society, including the large numbers of internally displaced persons and returnees. 6/  Country Update/ / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/7 ONGOING OPERATIONS / education and training In 2019, a new five-year TVET strategy (2020–2024) was developed and endorsed Afghanistan Second by the Human Capital Council. The strategy provides a roadmap for the development and Skills Development expansion of the TVET sector over the next Project (ASDP II) five years to cover formal, non-formal, and in- formal TVET on a common strategic platform. cIDA grant $55 million The project also works on the concept of a select number of lead institutes located in The project supports the Government of Herat, Kabul, and Nangarhar for targeted sup- Afghanistan in its strategy to build mar- port and capacity building to serve as hubs ket relevant vocational and technical skills for teacher training and curriculum develop- for economic growth and development. ment. The project also supports an in-service Building on the former Afghanistan Skills Technical Teacher Training Institute. Development Project, this program will con- The curricula for the three priority trades of tinue to strengthen the Technical Vocational information and communications technology Education and Training (TVET) institution- (ICT), accounting, and business administra- al system, improve performance of TVET tion have been redeveloped. The work on the schools and institutes, and improve teacher revision and redevelopment of the curricula competencies. for construction, auto-repair, and agriculture In July 2017, the project was restructured is ongoing. to reemphasize its focus on the development ASPD II is financing an academic partner- objective of improving TVET teacher compe- ship contract with Pune University in India, tencies and curriculum in selected priority where 20 faculty members from the National trades. The purpose of restructuring was to Institute of Management and Administration support implementation of the significant and other TVET institutes are enrolled to pur- new skills development reforms that the gov- sue master’s degrees in ICT, commerce, and ernment has launched. business administration. The project underwent two additional re- A total of 24 teachers have enrolled at structuring in 2018 and 2019 to respond to ASDP II will support Reva University in India for one-year training the emerging programmatic and operational the new five-year TVET courses in accounting and business adminis- priorities in the TVET sector. strategy recently adopted in Afghanistan. The tration. An additional 61 teachers have been The project supports (i) realignment of the strategy will to provide a selected following the last round of teacher TVET sector with labor market needs in eight TVET Authority (TVETA) based on Presidential roadmap to develop and Decree No. 11, dated April 21, 2018. The man- assessment and will join Sam Higginbottom priority trades, including areas with potential expand the TVET sector date for vocational education has been trans- over the next five years to University in India for one-year capacity build- to improve women’s labor force participation; cover formal, non-formal, ing in agronomy and horticulture. (ii) assessment of the qualification of all TVET ferred from the Ministry of Education and and informal TVET on Deputy Minister for TVET to the TVETA, which In addition, over 522 TVET graduates have teachers; (iii) training abroad offered to the a common strategic has been tasked to oversee the coordina- platform. been supported with scholarships through best qualified; (iv) mobilizing four lead insti- tion and implementation of TVET policy. The a voucher program, which facilitates further tutes to support teacher assessments/train- TVETA was recently endorsed as an independ- professional studies for meritorious students ing in seven priority trades; (v) upgrading and ent government entity by parliament. who have graduated from TVET institute. standardizing competency-based curriculum across the priority trades; and (vi) implement- Upon request of the TVETA, the World Bank ing a teacher policy framework to guide re- completed an institutional and capacity as- forms in teacher recruitment, management, sessment of the Authority to improve its ef- and training. ficiency and capacity in service delivery. An To streamline institutional capacity to action plan with concrete steps for improv- deliver on the human capital development ing TVETA’s implementation capacity is being agenda, GoIRA has established a standalone developed. Country Update/ ongoing operations 8/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/9 EQRA EQRA also seeks to enhance transpar- Through EQRA, the Ministry of Education will ency and management capacity of the c IDA Grant $100 million Ministry of Education and in the provinces increase access to quality education by building over c ARTF Grant $100 million by strengthening its Education Management 2,000 schools over a five- c Global Partnership for Education Information System and data collection pro- year period and supporting $98 million cedures, improving teacher recruitment and the capacity building of teachers through EQRA will be implemented over the course human resource management, and imple- mentoring and continuous menting budget planning and norm-based professional development of five years from 2018 to 2023. The project’s initiatives. A crucial focus objective is to increase equitable access to operations and maintenance budget alloca- for the project is to enable primary and secondary education in selected tion formulae. girls to have better access to school. lagging provinces, particularly for girls, and to improve learning conditions in Afghanistan. Strengthening Primary beneficiaries will be students in general education, out-of-school children in Women’s Economic lagging provinces (never enrolled or dropped Empowerment Project out), teachers, principals, and Ministry of Education staff. The system-level improve- (SWEEP) ments in management will benefit all exist- JSDF Grant $2.7 million c ing students as well as out-of-school children SWEEP is a three-year pilot project im- who will be brought into school. The project is plemented by the Aga Khan Foundation- expected to benefit about 7 million children Afghanistan in close coordination with the who are attending school regularly from di- Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs. SWEEP rect project interventions over the five-year was requested by the government to develop implementation period. tools and methods and provide a platform Component 1 to increase access to edu- to share experiences to inform the Women’s cation will be implemented in 17 selected Economic Empowerment National Priority provinces—Badghis, Balkh, Faryab, Ghazni, Program (see page 54). Helmand, Herat, Kabul, Kandahar, Khost, The main beneficiaries will be poor women Kunduz, Logar, Nangarhar, Nooristan, Paktika, in select rural and peri-urban areas. SWEEP Urozgan, Wardak, and Zabul. will support the development and capacity Constraints that limit school participation in Afghanistan, such as deteriorating secu- building of clusters (self-help groups com- / financial sector for Afghanistan (MISFA), as well as, support- prising community-based savings groups), rity, cultural norms that undervalue educa- ing MISFA to take on a broader role as a cata- and provide them with training, business tion, opportunity costs to attending school, distance to school, lack of gender-segregated development services, and access to finance. Access to Finance lyst for innovations to increase access and usage of financial services from the lower latrines, and lack of female teachers, will be A baseline survey was completed in October 2018, followed by implementation of the Project end of the market according to its new stra- addressed through key interventions. These tegic plan. It should, however, be underlined project in November 2018. cIDA grant $50 million include (i) improving school infrastructure, that the role of MISFA is primarily that of Since December 2018, a total of 45 clusters which will be implemented by the Ministry The Access to Finance Project aims to build market facilitator, rather than direct techni- have been formed in four provinces, regular of Rural Rehabilitation and Development; (ii) institutional capacity to improve access cal assistance provider. monthly cluster meetings have been held, providing school grants; and (iii) establishing to credit of micro, small, and medium en- Under component 1, MISFA has initiated a community-based education classes. and subcommittees formed. Cluster mem- terprises. The project has the following series of activities, including expanding the To improve learning conditions, the project bers are being trained and expected to re- components: Targeting the Ultra Poor (TUP) program in will support textbook development based on ceive revolving loan funds in the next quarter. Component 1: Improving access to finan- six provinces (Balkh, Kabul, Kandahar, Kunar, a new curriculum, dissemination of learning cial services for micro and small enterprises. Laghman, and Takhar), where it has been materials, and improvements in teaching This component aims to provide continuing successful in targeting and initiating mean- quality through coaching and subject-specific support to the microfinance sector through ingful improvements in the well-being of training. the Microfinance Investment Support Facility ultra-poor beneficiaries. Country Update/ongoing operations 10/  results destitute families seize opportunity to make a living in Balkh province • Ultra-poor families in a village in Balkh province have had to eke out a living from almost nothing. • Their lives have taken a positive turn since participating in the Targeting the Ultra Poor (TUP) program, enabling them to earn a sustainable livelihood. The program provides livestock and training, and facilitates access to various services. • Research has shown per capita consumption of TUP households increased by almost a third and a fifth moved above the national poverty line. W hen Shukria’s husband died in 2009, she was left alone with four young children in a rented house in Nahr-e-Shahi dis- trict in Balkh province with no support or money. Having no job skills made it difficult for her to provide for her children. “When my husband was alive, we had a rented house, but after his death, I wasn’t able to afford the rent, and there was no one to help us,” says Shukria, 40. Her last option to survive was to beg on the streets of Mazar- e-Sharif city. “We were very poor. One day we’d have something to eat, the next day nothing,” she recalls. In 2016, Shukria’s life changed when she received a cow and a calf through the Targeting the Ultra Poor (TUP) program. She now lives in a mud house, taking care of her livestock and a tire repair micro business. “Now I’m not begging,” she says. “Thank God! I have money and a cow. I’m so happy.” “ At the end of the program in 2017, she sold one of care through community-based health services. The her cows for 33,000 afghanis (about $450) and invested program also helps participants send their children to the money in a small kiosk for repairing punctured tires, school. The TUP program has made where her 18-year-old son works. Following TUP sup- Shukria is among the thousands of recipients the TUP port, Shukria has the income to support her family and has successfully reached across the country. Research send her two daughters to school. many positive impacts on ultra-poor families. measuring the program’s impact confirms that Shukria’s story is not an isolated case. One year after the end of the program, per capita consumption of TUP households We have provided them training on health Transforming Lives increased by almost a third and a fifth moved above the The TUP program aims at “graduating” participants national poverty line. and livestock and linked them to the market. from safety nets programs to income-earning activities, The program has succeeded in transforming the lives linking them with microfinance programs. Building on of the ultra-poor households it supports. “The TUP pro- ” lessons learned from pilot programs and internatio- gram has made many positive impacts on ultra-poor They sell the milk at the market and their economic nal experience, the TUP program provides participants families,” says Hijratullah Omari Wardak, TUP project a one-year package of inputs, including the transfer of monitoring officer in Balkh province. “We provided them condition has improved. productive assets (such as livestock); training (classroom training on health and livestock and linked them to the and practical work); subsistence support (monthly sti- market. They sell the milk at the market and their econo- pend as 12-month income support); and basic health mic condition has improved.” –Hijratullah Omari Wardak, TUP project monitoring officer, Balkh province Country Update/ ongoing operations 12/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/13 TUP has been scaled up to reach close to rent three year program of policy reforms. 4,000 additional households in two more Supported reforms are organized under two provinces (Parwan and Nangarhar). The two pillars: (i) strengthening the policy framework TUP projects are expected to be completed at to support state effectiveness, private invest- end-June 2021. ment, and social inclusion; and (ii) improving Component 2: Improving access to finan- the policy and institutional framework for cial services for small and medium enterpris- public financial management. es (SMEs). Through support to the expansion The IP-DPG focuses on reforms to address of the Afghanistan Credit Guarantee Facility corruption, improve the management of pub- and technical assistance to financial insti- lic resources, and manage current economic tutions to strengthen their SME lending and political risks. Reforms under the first pil- capacity, this component aims to increase lar support development of e-payments, civil commercial bank and microfinance institu- service reforms, access to finance, power sec- tion lending to SMEs and thus facilitate their tor reform, land titling, and water productiv- access to financial services. Component 2 ity. Reforms under the second pillar support supports the provision of credit guarantees an improved public investment management for SMEs. system, tax administration, and accountabil- Implementation of component 2 started ity of public finances. in June 2017, after an implementation part- nership agreement was signed between the Ministry of Finance and the Afghanistan Afghanistan: Public- Credit Guarantee Foundation. As of end-Sep- Private Partnerships tember 2019, the outstanding guaranteed SME loan portfolio of three partner finan- and Public Investment cial institutions is $19.6 million, down from Advisory Project $25.7 million at the beginning of 2019. This is explained by the current operating envi- (PPIAP) ronment, which affects the investment de- IDA Grant $20 million c cisions of and ensuing demand for loans by ARTF Grant $30 million c SMEs, as well as the risk appetite of financial PPIAP will work with the government and, in institutions. The revised project closing date The IP-DPG operation particular, the Central Partnerships Authority continues to support is June 30, 2021. in the Ministry of Finance to develop a pipe- progress on key reforms line of feasible privately and publicly funded Afghanistan Incentive in Afghanistan. It focuses on reforms to address projects. Program Development corruption and improve The project, effective July 2018, is organ- the management of An impact evaluation of the program, the incidence of extreme poverty, increased ized around three complementary invest- Policy Grant (IP-DPG) public resources. Reforms include development of carried out jointly with the Development consumption, and improved food security ment components: e-payments, civil service Impact Evaluation, has been completed in among the beneficiaries, over 90 percent of • Strengthening institutional and technical reforms, access to finance, IDA Grant $160 million c Balkh province, tracking households from whom are women. capacity of relevant institutions and power sector reform, ARTF Grant $240 million c land titling, and water before the interventions started to one year A fifth of participating households in supporting the development of a Public productivity. after the program ended. The baseline survey Balkh moved above the national poverty The IP-DPG operation supports continued pro- Investment Management–Public-Private showed that the TUP selection process was line (roughly equivalent to $1 per person gress on key reforms under the Afghanistan Partnership framework; effective in identifying households that— per day). Their spending was up by a third. National Peace and Development Framework. • Supporting the establishment and opera- across a range of dimensions—were worse Psychological well-being, the number of The operation will provide up to $400 million tion of an Investment Project Preparation off than the average resident in target areas, hours spent working, financial inclusion, and of recurrent cost support to the Government Facility, including the development of its and arguably more in need of support to help the empowerment of women all rose too. of Afghanistan to support vital services, mo- governance structure, institutional roles shift them closer to sustainable livelihoods. A follow-up survey will be undertaken in bilized against a series of high priority policy and responsibilities; and The results of the impact evaluation pub- 2020 to measure long-term consumption and institutional reforms. • Project management. lished in June 2019 show that the TUP pro- impact and other dimensions. This is the third of three planned opera- gram in Balkh led to a significant reduction in Based on the success of the program, the tions aligned with the government’s cur- Country Update/ ongoing operations 14/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/15 Fiscal Performance owned banks: New Kabul Bank, Bank Millie Afghan, and Pashtany Bank. It will modernize Improvement Support their IT infrastructure and develop sustain- Project (FSP) able business models to support inclusive growth. IDA Grant $25 million c The project, effective April 2018, is achiev- ARTF Grant $75 million c ing significant progress in addressing Government of Afghanistan c reforms in the corporate governance frame- $100 million work of the state-owned banks. With project support, MoF has developed an ownership FSP is designed to improve management of policy, established an ownership unit, and public finances in Afghanistan by strength- defined the terms of reference of the supervi- ening the capacity of the Ministry of Finance sory boards by means of a presidential decree (MoF), National Procurement Authority that was issued in December 2018. (NPA), and Supreme Audit Office. It supports The World Bank is working closely with the implementation of the Afghanistan MoF and the state banks to prioritize corpo- Fiscal Performance Improvement Plan (FPIP) rate governance reforms and critical IT up- through recipient-executed investment grades to boost operational efficiency of the financing. state banks. The project aims to improve domestic rev- enue mobilization and public expenditure management, and to reinforce a perfor- Payments Automation mance-oriented management culture in MoF. FSP, which came into effect in January and Integration of 2018, provides strategic support at a criti- Salaries in Afghanistan cal moment in Afghanistan’s development. Improved public financial management and (PAISA) Project revenue generation is central to the govern- IDA Grant $10 million c ment’s self-sufficiency agenda. ARTF Grant $35 million c FSP focuses on four key result areas: (i) im- The project objective is to support the de- proved development budget execution rate; velopment of digital government-to-person (ii) increased domestic revenue as a percent- FSP supports the (G2P) payments in Afghanistan. Advisory age of GDP; (iii) increased compliance with Afghanistan Revenue assistance to the recipient’s Ministry of audit recommendations; and, (iv) improve- Department, which Finance, Da Afghanistan Bank, and benefi- ment in core institutional capacity, represent- ernization measures and of electronic filing; mance Management Team of a publicly ac- is implementing a transparent digital ciary entities on improved legal and regulato- ed by a reduction in the number of long-term and supporting preparations for the imple- cessible web-based Afghanistan Performance taxation system that will ry frameworks and operational processes will technical assistants. mentation of value-added tax. Continued roll- Management Information System, alongside reduce opportunities for complement investments in physical IT in- The overall implementation progress and out of the Automated Systems for Customs rollout of FPIP to 110 teams across MoF, NPA, corruption and provide the public with up-to-date frastructure as well as incentives to spur pri- progress toward achievement of project ob- Data (ASYCUDA) system, with 22 customs of- and Supreme Audit Office. information, building trust vate-sector–led delivery of financial services. jectives are currently rated as "Moderately fices connected, and supporting preparations in the tax system. The project comprises four components: Satisfactory". Key implementation develop- ments secured to date include: for the implementation of the National Single Window. Modernizing Afghan (i) supporting a biometric identification sys- Component 1: Budget as Tool for Component 3: Treasury Management, State-Owned Banks tem for civil servants and pensioners; (ii) in- tegrating the identification, verification, and Development. Implementation by MoF of key enhancements to the budget process Accountability, and Transparency. Develop- ment of four key Electronic Government Project payment systems; (iii) expanding financial services and access points for digital cash through a revised budget circular and budget Procurement (eGP) modules by the NPA, IDA Grant $40 million c out and cashless payments; and (iv) project submission template; introducing strategic alongside complementary advances in Open The project aims to strengthen corporate gov- management. screening; and improved costing information Contracting Partnership and Open Contract ernance and enhance operational efficiency The project was approved by the World in budget submissions. Data Standards implementation. of state-owned banks. The project, imple- Bank Board on April 25, 2019, and became ef- Component 2: Revenue Mobilization. Component 4: Institutional Capacity mented by the Ministry of Finance, will con- fective on September 25, 2019. Implementation by the Afghanistan Revenue Building and Performance Management. tribute to the modernization, transparency, Department of key re-organization and mod- Development and launch by the MoF Perfor- and efficiency of the three Afghan state- Country Update/ ongoing operations 16/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/17 / health HEALTH INDICATORS Afghanistan ON POSITIVE TREND Sehatmandi (Health) UNDER-FIVE MORTALITY RATE Project DROPPED from 191 to 50 per IDA Grant $140 million c 1,000 live births from 2006 to ARTF Grant $425 million c 2018. Global Financing Facility c Grant $35 million NEWBORN MORTALITY RATE The project aims to increase the utilization FELL from 53 to 23 per 1,000 live and quality of health, nutrition, and family births from 2003 to 2018. planning services across Afghanistan. The project comprises three components: Component 1: To improve service delivery, NUMBER OF FUNCTIONING this component will finance performance- HEALTH FACILITIES INCREASED based contracts to deliver the Basic Package to more than 2,800 in 2018 from of Health Services and Essential Package of 496 in 2002, while at the same Hospital Services across the country. time the proportion of facilities Component 2: To strengthen the health with female staff increased. system and its performance, this component will support a systematic organized approach to establish a performance management cul- BIRTHS ATTENDED BY SKILLED ture in the Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) HEALTH PERSONNEL AMONG and among stakeholders. THE LOWEST INCOME QUINTILE Component 3: To strengthen demand and INCREASED to 58.8 percent from community accountability for key health 14.9 percent. services, the third component will finance a range of activities, including communication campaigns aimed at raising overall aware- PENTA3 IMMUNIZATION ness of health rights as well as specific health COVERAGE MORE THAN Recent estimates show behaviors to support MoPH and service pro- that the Maternal DOUBLED (a combination of five viders to be more responsive to community Mortality Ratio in vaccines in one covering diphthe- health needs. Afghanistan has fallen significantly in recent ria, Pertussis, tetanus, haemo- The Afghan health system has made con- years. The decline in philus influenzae type b, and siderable progress during the past decade crease barriers for women in accessing maternal death has been thanks to strong government leadership, services. helped by reforms, under hepatitis B) from 29 percent to 61 sound public health policies, innovative ser- Afghanistan also has one of the high- the Sehatmandi project, in percent among children age 12 to health clinics, such as this vice delivery, careful program monitoring est levels of child malnutrition in the world. one, which have resulted in 23 months in the lowest income provision of better health and evaluation, and development assistance. About 36.6 percent of children under five care and improvement in quintile. Data from household surveys (between 2003 suffer from chronic malnutrition, and both prenatal and postnatal and 2018) show significant declines in mater- women and children suffer from high levels practices. CONTRACEPTIVE PREVALENCE nal and child mortality. of vitamin and mineral deficiencies. RATE INCREASED (using any Despite significant improvements in the The Maternal Mortality Ratio (MMR) fell coverage and quality of health services, as well significantly from 1,600 per 100,000 live modern method) from 5.3 percent as a drop in maternal, infant, and under-five births in 2002 to 638 per 100,000 live births to 17.4 percent between 2000 and mortality, Afghanistan health indicators are in 2017, according to estimates of the United 2018. still worse than the average for low-income Nations Inter-Agency Working Group for countries, indicating a need to further de- Estimation of Maternal Mortality. Country Update/ ongoing operations 18/  results quality health services move closer to residents in remote district • Thousands of residents in a remote district in Samangan province faced long distances and difficult conditions to access health services in the provincial capital. • The provision of a basic package of health services under the Afghanistan Sehatmandi Project in the district health center has brought health care closer to the residents. • The project is a follow-on of the System Enhancement for Health Action in Transition program and seeks to increase the utilization and quality of health, nutrition, and family planning services across the country. O n a cold, early morning, Mirza Murad, 60, walks toward the Hazrat Sultan Comprehen- sive Health Center (CHC), gripping a cane in his trembling hand. Murad is a laborer and earns a living working for others on their farmland. The hardships of labor and years of suffering from stomach issues have made him a very thin man. Murad routinely visits the health center for check-ups and medicine, located just 5 kilometers from Gargari village where he lives. It is a short distance compared to the 24 kilometers he had to travel to Aybak, the pro- vincial capital of Samangan, to seek medical care. The shortened journey allows him to visit the health center more frequently. “Everyone from our village comes here for treatment and the [health center] personnel treats us nicely,” Murad says. “The health center is helpful as it treats our problems.” The CHC is located in the remote district of Hazrat Sultan in Samangan province in northern Afghanistan. “ It was established more than 40 years ago as a health outpost but was converted to a health center in 2017. It now offers a basic package of health services (BPHS), Everyone from our village which include outpatient, midwifery, vaccination, nutri- tion, and mental health treatment. It also has a pharma- Afghanistan Sehatmandi Project, which aims to increase the utilization and quality of health, nutrition, and fami- comes here for treatment and cy and an ambulance. There are 20 health and support ly planning services across the country. staff members, serving 24,000 inhabitants in the dis- Under Sehatmandi, health councils have been set up trict. The CHC sees an average of 300 patients a day and to boost relations between the community and health the [health center] personnel treats us nicely. has an inpatient facility for up to five patients. Hazrat Sultan CHC is one of 47 health facilities delive- facilities. They play a key role in expanding the reach of health services by engaging with the local population ” The health center is helpful as it ring BPHS in Samangan province, bringing quality health and raising awareness of health issues. services closer to residents in remote areas. The Ministry As a result, general knowledge of health issues has in- of Public Health has contracted nongovernmental orga- treats our problems. creased and with it, demand for quality health care, says nizations, like the Social and Health Development Pro- gram (SHDP), to provide BPHS in these health facilities. Dr Nisar Ahmad Jawid, SHDP Deputy Technical Project Manager of the Sehatmandi Project in Samangan pro- vince. “In the past, people would request that we esta- –Mirza Murad, resident, Gargari village, Hazrat Sultan district. Demand for Quality Services blish more health centers. Now they ask us to increase The provision of BPHS and an essential package of hos- the quality of the health services they receive, which pital services across Afghanistan is supported by the means people understand their needs,” he says. Country Update/ ongoing operations 20/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/21 / infrastructure not awarded because the qualified bid- Over 230,000 people and 1,600 institutions der failed to provide an audit report and and businesses in Herat Afghanistan Digital a similar contract and was disqualified. Based on this, the Project Management province will benefit from new or improved electricity CASA 1 Project Unit has redesigned/revised the bidding services under the Herat Electrification Project. document to re-advertise it; and (ii) BER IDA Grant $51 million c for the silos in Herat and Kandahar sites is The project, which came into effect in March expected to be completed in March 2020. 2018, aims to increase access to affordable The Grain Reserve Managing Charter has internet, attract private investors to the sec- been developed and included in the Ministry tor, and improve the government’s capac- of Justice's legislative plan. The first draft of ity to deliver digital government services by three operational guidelines has been com- supporting a regionally integrated digital pleted. The project is benefiting from tech- infrastructure and creating an enabling en- nical assistance from the UN World Food vironment. The Ministry of Communications Programme, especially on the construction of and Information Technology is the imple- physical infrastructure. menting agency. Central Asia South Afghanistan Strategic Asia Electricity Grain Reserve Project Transmission and IDA Grant $20.3 million c JSDF Grant $9.7 million c Trade Project The project will enable the Ministry of (CASA-1000) Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock to estab- IDA Grant/Credit $526.5 million, c lish a strategic wheat reserve to be available including $316.5 million IDA grant to to Afghan households to meet their needs Afghanistan following any unforeseen emergency situ- ation that affects access to wheat for their CASA-1000, covering Afghanistan, Kyrgyz consumption, and to improve the efficiency Republic, Pakistan, and Tajikistan, will put in of grain storage management. place the commercial and institutional ar- The project supports the establishment of rangements as well as the infrastructure a governmental semi-autonomous corpora- required for 1,300 megawatts (MW) of sus- tion to be in charge of managing the grain tainable electricity trade. reserve of the country and coordinate its ac- The total project cost is estimated at Nurek power plant in Tajikistan) to Pakistan of about 560 km of an overhead HVDC trans- tivities with other governmental agencies $1.17 billion, to which the World Bank and Afghanistan. mission line from Sangtuda converter station and donors. has contributed $526.5 million in loans At approval, CASA-1000 included the en- in Tajikistan to Nowshera converter station For the storage of grains, the project will and grants to the four countries. Several gineering design, construction, and commis- in Pakistan. In addition, Afghanistan has re- upgrade two existing storage facilities, build other development partners are also pro- sioning of high voltage alternating current ceived a $40 million grant from the ARTF for four new large facilities, as well as build na- viding financing for CASA-1000, including (HVAC) transmission lines and associated the CASA Community Support Program (see tional capacity in human resources to oper- the Islamic Development Bank, European substation in Kyrgyz Republic and Tajikistan; page 43) ate these facilities according to international Bank for Reconstruction and Development, high voltage direct current (HVDC) trans- Afghanistan is expected to receive 300 standards. It is estimated that by end of this United States Government, United Kingdom mission lines from Tajikistan to Pakistan MW of electricity import from Tajikistan and five-year project, the overall storage capac- Department for International Development, via Afghanistan; and three new HVDC con- Kyrgyz Republic through the existing 220 ity for wheat will reach 200,000 metric tons, and United States Agency for International verter stations in Tajikistan, Pakistan, and kV AC lines from Sangtuda substation, and sufficient for the consumption of 2 million Development. Afghanistan. However, in 2016, the four Tajikistan to Chimtala substation in Kabul Afghans for six months. CASA-1000 will build more than 1,200 kilo- countries restructured the project, in which via Pul-e-Khumri. Da Afghanistan Breshna Progress has been recorded including: (i) meters (km) of electricity transmission lines the converter station in Kabul was dropped. Sherkat (DABS), Afghanistan’s electricity Bid Evaluation Report (BER) for construc- to transmit excess summer hydropower en- Of the total project financing, Afghanistan company under the Ministry of Energy and tion of steel silo in Kabul was completed ergy from existing power plants (such as the has received $316.5 million in the form of an Water, is the implementing agency for the on December 2019 but the contract was Toktogul power plant in Kyrgyz Republic and IDA grant. The grant will support construction Afghanistan portion of this project, which in- Country Update/ ongoing operations 22/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/23 Component 1: Electrification of four districts Irrigation Restoration in Herat province: This component supports investments for building a new 110 kV trans- and Development mission line and four 110/20 kV substations Project (IRDP) and medium and low voltage distribu- tion networks in Chesht, Karokh, Obe, and IDA Grant $97.8 million c Pashtun-Zarghoon districts. ARTF Grant $118.4 million c Component 2: Grid densification, exten- Government of Afghanistan c sion and off-grid pilots in Herat province: $3.5 million This component supports investment for The project builds upon and scales up ac- supply and installation of a capacitor bank at tivities supported under the completed 24-Hoot substation to improve the voltage World Bank-financed Emergency Irrigation profile of the existing network of Herat city, Rehabilitation Project, closed in December including the industrial park. Component 2 2011. also supports extension of a 220 kV trans- After project restructuring and additional mission line, construction of a substation at financing in July 2016, IRDP envisages sup- Pol-e-Hashimi, and upgradation of the distri- port to rehabilitate irrigation systems serving bution network. It also covers piloting a solar some 215,000 hectares of land and design mini-grid. of a limited number of small multi-purpose Component 3: Technical assistance: This dams and related works, while establishing component will finance project manage- hydro-meteorological facilities and services. ment and implementation support to ensure Progress had been made in all areas. In the timely and quality compilation of the pro- irrigation component, a total of 200 irrigation ject. It also supports the review of existing schemes has been rehabilitated, covering standards and procedures, and the prepara- some 284,900 hectares of irrigation com- tion of a grid code for the Afghanistan power mand area and 521,300 farmers (compared system. to the end project target of 215,000 hectares Contracts have been awarded for the con- and over 425,000 farmers). A total of 25.68 struction of the 110 kV transmission line, the kilometers (out of 58.26 kilometers end of four 110/20 kV substations, and electrifica- project target) critical river basin erosion pro- tion of the four districts. Major equipment tection in various part of the country have More than half a million for the 110 kV transmission line to Karokh been completed so far. farmers will see long-term benefits as they improve is on-site and installation is in progress. In the small dam component, a prefeasi- cludes a Security Management Plan for both frastructure packages under CASA-1000 water management Boundary walls and structural work of con- bility review of 22 small dams resulted in a in the other three countries has also been through infrastructural trol rooms have been completed and work the construction and operation phase. feasibility study being conducted on the six upgrades to their irrigation CASA-1000 came into effect in January completed, including the procurement for systems under IRDP. on the switchyard is in progress. Supply of best ranked dams in the northern river basin 2018. Three contracts for the HVDC trans- the two convertor stations in Tajikistan and “If we improve water distribution equipment for electrification of (which is not on international rivers). A letter Pakistan for which the contracts were signed management, we can help the four districts has been completed and in- mission line in Afghanistan were signed in has been received from MoF for dropping the rural farmers improve December 2017. Survey and design works are in September 2018. their livelihoods and raise stallation work is underway. detailed social and environmental study from in the final stages. Construction of the line in their standard of living Contract for supply and installation of the the project because the government will fi- as a result,” says an IRDP Lot 3 started in January 2020, while work in Lot 1 and 2 is expected to begin in March 2020. Herat Electrification provincial manager. capacitor bank in 24-Hoot substation has been awarded and procurement for the 220 nance the detailed design and construction of those six best ranked dams in the feasibil- The contracts for preparation of the coun- Project kV transmission line and Pol-e-Hashimi sub- ity study. try-specific Environmental and Social Impact station is in process. The technical study of Further, minor repair works for Qargha IDA Grant $60 million c the pilot solar project has been completed dam in Kabul have been completed, while Assessment and the Resettlement Action Plan for the HVDC transmission line are com- The project aims to support DABS provide and the package is under procurement. A Darunta dam in Jalalabad is in progress. Dam pleted and with both the ESIA and the RAP new or improved electricity services to contract with a consulting firm for prepara- safety guidelines for Afghanistan have been approved. A contract for a Project Owner’s over 230,000 people and 1,600 institutions tion of the grid code has been signed and developed and completed under the project. Engineer for the HVDC components was and businesses in selected areas in Herat work on preparation of the grid code is in Dam Safety Inspection reports are prepared awarded in November 2018. province. progress. for 10 existing dams in various parts of the Procurement for the majority of key in- The project comprises three components: country. Country Update/ ongoing operations 24/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/25 In the hydro-met component, installation The project was scheduled to close on of 127 hydrological stations and 56 snow and March 15, 2020, but has been extended until meteorological stations located in various lo- December 31, 2020 on government request cations on the five river basins in the country to complete all ongoing civil work contracts is completed and operations and mainte- and launch the process for the implementa- nance (O&M) work is ongoing. In addition, tion completion report. 40 cableway stations for flow measurement at selected hydrology stations have been in- stalled and installation of 30 cableways are Citizens’ Charter ongoing. Further, a national O&M team has Afghanistan Project been established to take care of O&M mobile teams of all hydrological stations. (Citizens’ Charter) Progress to date also include: Basin c IDA Grant $227.7 million Development Plan for Upper Kabul and Panj- c ARTF Grant $444.3 million Amu River Master Plan are under procure- (includes additional financing of IDA ment; terms of reference for hydrogeology Grant $127.7 million and ARTF Grant $44.3 drilling test wells and geophysical survey for million for Citizens’ Charter Emergency seven cities (Farah, Herat, Jalalabad, Kabul, Regional Displacement Response) Kandahar, Mazar, and Zaranj) have been c Government of Afghanistan completed; bids for construction work for the three provinces of Nimroz, Helmand, and $128 million Khost are under procurement; and recruit- The Citizens’ Charter is the successor to ment of the implementing company for Kabul the highly successful National Solidarity and Herat cities is done. Hydrogeological Programme (NSP), which introduced a com- maps have been prepared for the Preliminary munity-driven development approach to- National Ground Water Potential Map and ward rural infrastructure and service delivery National Data Availability/Well Depth-Water and reached about 35,000 communities over Level/Water Quality Maps. 14 years. The project will support the first phase of Thousands of villagers the Government of Afghanistan’s 10-year / rural development across Afghanistan are Citizens’ Charter National Program and will enjoying easier access to health care, schools As of January 31, 2020, construction of 750 target one third of the country. The first Afghanistan Rural and markets, which has improved their quality of km of secondary gravel roads, 265 km of sec- phase of the program is expected to be im- plemented over a period of four years, ending ondary asphalt roads, and 1,500 km of ter- Access Project (ARAP) life. The improved access is the work of the ARAP, tiary roads has been completed. In addition, by 2020. c IDA Grant $125 million which has turned rural 1,480 linear meters of secondary bridges and The Citizens’ Charter aims to improve the dirt roads into all-weather 1,980 linear meters of tertiary bridges have delivery of core infrastructure and social ser- c ARTF Grant $312 million ones. “Before, we had to walk at least two hours to been built. vices to participating communities through ARAP aims to enable rural communities get to the main highway,” Routine and periodic maintenance of 670 strengthened Community Development across Afghanistan to benefit from improved says a villager, “but now km of secondary roads has been undertaken Councils (CDCs). These services are part of a it takes less than an hour access to basic services and facilities through by foot or 15–20 minutes as well as routine and periodic maintenance minimum service standards package that the all-weather roads. The project is expected to by car.” of 3,500 km of tertiary roads. government is committed to delivering to the increase the number of people living within Rollout of the first nationwide inventory citizens of Afghanistan. 2 kilometers (km) of all-season roads, reduce and condition survey of rural roads has been The project has been set up as an inter- travel time to essential services, and enable completed and over 90 percent of inventory ministerial program for the delivery of a pack- rural communities to access essential servic- for secondary roads and above have been age of basic services and is structured around es more frequently. completed for 32 out 34 provinces. four components: Country Update/ ongoing operations 26/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/27 Component 1: Service Standards Grants. supervision and learning activities from vil- This component supports two types of grants lage to national levels, exchange visits across to CDCs: communities, especially for women, and sup- (1a) Rural Areas Service Standards Grants. port for thematic studies and evaluations. It The Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and covers a range of participatory monitoring Development (MRRD) has overall responsi- and evaluation tools, including the rollout of bility for the implementation of the grants. simple citizens’ scorecards to be completed This subcomponent supports delivery of by CDCs and Social Organizers to report on minimum service standards on rural infra- the minimum service standards. structure. Allocations per community will be Component 4 (new under Additional needs-based and based on an initial gap and Financing): Project Implementation and needs assessment against the minimum ser- Management. This component supports the vice standards. The investments include wa- management and oversight of the project ter supply and a choice between basic road at national, provincial, and district level in access, electricity, or small-scale irrigation. rural areas and the municipal management (1b) Urban Areas Block Grants. The units in the four regional hub cities. This in- Independent Directorate of Local Governance cludes areas such as policy and operational (IDLG)—the project’s urban implementing planning; capacity building; management agency—has overall responsibility for the information systems; grievance redress grants to 600 urban CDCs and 120 Guzars mechanisms; human resource management; (neighborhoods) in four major cities (Herat, communications; donor and field coordina- Jalalabad, Kandahar, and Mazar-i-Sharif) to tion; financial management and procure- fund small infrastructure works. The menu ment functions; and safeguards oversight. of options includes street upgrading, parks, Component 5 (new under Additional lighting, provision of potable water, solid Financing): Social Inclusion and Maintenance waste management arrangements, and and Construction Cash Grants (MCCGs). This women’s economic activities. This subcom- component will provide emergency short- ponent supports service delivery linkages be- term employment opportunities through la- tween the CDC, cluster/Guzar, urban district, bor-intensive public works, as well as support The Citizens’ Charter is investing in women and and municipality. for collective action activities beyond public public works schemes that are targeted at giving them leadership Component 2: Institution Building. This works that are aimed to foster greater social opportunities to build vulnerable households within the commu- component supports capacity building, tech- inclusion and protect the ultra-poor/vulner- their confidence and nities and managed through a community- vision for the future. nical assistance, and community facilitation able in communities. driven development approach. The cash for Women are involved in the services. In rural areas, MRRD works with There are two subcomponents: decision-making process works will include repairs, rehabilitation, 14 facilitating partners (FPs) in undertaking (i) Social Inclusion Grants and Collective of their communities as EXPECTED CITIZENS’ CHARTER RESULTS cleaning, expansion, or construction. Cash for elected representatives of capacity building and training of provincial Action Activities will take the form of a services will target ultra-vulnerable house- Community Development Results expected under the first phase include : and district staff to oversee, monitor, and “matching grant” up to a total value of $2,000 Councils. holds that cannot participate in public works. report on project progress, as well as Social per community that will be used to provide • 10 million Afghans reached. The Kuchies Development Sub-Program Organizers. The ministry provides engineer- incentives for community philanthropy. The • 3.4 million people gaining access to clean drinking water. (KDSP) is an additional sub-program to the ing and technical support to communities combination of the matching grant and com- Citizens’ Charter. The sub-program was of- • Improvements to quality of service delivery in health, across all 34 provinces. munity donations will be used in the first ficially launched in April 2019 and aims In urban areas, IDLG works with UN Habitat, instance to initiate a food/grain bank for the education, rural roads, and electrification. to reach semi-nomadic and fully nomadic which serves as an Oversight Consultant, ultra-poor in each of the targeted commu- • Increase in citizen satisfaction and trust in government. Kuchies communities in Afghanistan. It ad- as well as four FPs on capacity building and nities. It is expected that this will be replen- • 35 percent return on investment for infrastructure projects. heres equally to the principles of equity, in- training of municipality staff to supervise, ished periodically with additional community clusion, participation, accountability, and monitor, and report on project progress. donations. transparency. KDSP is expected to comply Component 3: Monitoring and Knowledge (ii) MCCGs are to serve as quick-disbursing with the guidelines described in the Citizens’ Learning. This component includes robust emergency grants for work/labor-intensive Charter. Country Update/ ongoing operations 28/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/29 Self-help groups created under the WEE-RDP have Women’s Economic Component 2: Access to Finance. It comprises (i) providing seed grants to eligi- cumulatively saved over $125,000 and issued more Empowerment Rural ble SHGs and VSLAs to establish long-term than 4,500 loans to their members amounting to Development Project revolving funds; and (ii) facilitating access to financial services for rural women through some $76,000. The project will engage in 76 districts (WEE-RDP) partnerships with microfinance institutions and 5,000 villages across c IDA Grant $25 million and commercial banks to promote financial Afghanistan and will work inclusion of women groups; developing rel- closely with other rural c ARTF Grant $75 million development programs. evant financial products and services with WEE-RDP aims to increase social and eco- commercial banks and microfinance institu- nomic empowerment of poor rural women in tions; eliminating institutional constraints on selected communities. It is the flagship oper- women’s access to formal financial services; ation under the Women’s Economic Empow- exploring feasibility of piloting a system, ena- erment National Priority Program (WEE-NPP) bled by information technology, for delivery (see page 54) and builds upon the recently of financial products; and financial capacity closed Afghanistan Rural Enterprise Develop- building. ment Project (AREDP). Component 3: Enterprise Development WEE-RDP will engage in 76 districts and and Market Linkages. It comprises (i) provid- 5,000 villages in all 34 provinces across Af- ing technical assistance and supporting pro- ghanistan and will work in close collabora- motional activities to strengthen the capacity tion with several other rural development of EGs, PAs, and individual women entrepre- programs in the country, including the Citi- neurs to access markets and manage their zens’ Charter, Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation businesses; (ii) providing catalytic funds to and Development projects, National Horticul- eligible EGs and PAs; and (iii) supporting EGs, ture and Livestock Project, Access to Finance PAs, and/or individual women entrepreneurs Project, and microfinance institutions. The through facilitating their partnerships with project has begun mobilization through new business enterprises to improve the supply of Community Development Councils in the business development services and access to provinces previously covered under AREDP. markets. WEE-RDP will provide support to commu- The pace of social mobilization under WEE- nity-level women’s institutions through seed RDP has been remarkably high and more KDSP will support the provision of develop- more than 12,000 subproject proposals capital and technical assistance and link than 4,000 self-help groups (SHGs) have been ment services to the Kuchies communities prepared. them to formal financial institutions and created as of July 2019, over 3,200 of which in the areas of health, education, road con- In urban areas: Implementation has been markets to enable economic empowerment. were created over an eight-month period. The struction, safe drinking water, electricity, and rolled out in all 850 communities and Guzars. The project has three components: number of new SHGs already exceeds the drainage system. Additionally, the sectoral A total of 850 CPs completed; 850 CDCs elect- Component 1: Community Mobilization total number created for women before the menu for KDSP will include specific services ed; 849 CDPs completed; and 913 subproject and Institution Development. It comprises start of the project. tailored to the unique development needs proposals (SPs) financed for 823 CDCs and (i) providing technical assistance to support Overall, 78 percent of SHG members be- of the nomadic communities, which include 433 SPs completed. community mobilization for establishing self- long to the “poor” and “poorest” categories, electricity through solar or biogas systems Overall, 92 percent of CDC membership in help groups (SHGs) and federating them into according to the Well-Being Analysis carried and modernization of water reservoirs. areas previously covered by the NSP comprise Village Loan and Savings Associations (VL- out by the Citizens' Charter, which WEE-RDP Implementation progress to date includes: new members (i.e., those who had never pre- SAs), and Enterprise Groups (EGs) and feder- uses to identify target beneficiaries. The SHGs In rural areas: Over 11,800 community pro- viously served on CDCs) and half the office ating them into Producer Associations (PAs); have cumulatively saved over $125,000 and files (CPs) completed; over 11,700 new CDCs bearers are women. This is evidence that the and (ii) carrying out a program of activities have issued more than 4,500 loans to their elected; more than 11,500 Community new election system and norms on CDC gov- to strengthen capacity, quality, and financial members amounting to 6.1 million afghanis Development Plans (CDPs) completed; and ernance are having a strong impact. performance of SHGs, VSLAs, EGs, and PAs. ($76,250). Country Update/ ongoing operations 30/  results empowering rural women to root out poverty in Afghanistan By Rahmatullah Quraishi and Yaqub Sulliman W hile out in the field, we have seen that women are badly affected by poverty in rural areas and the value of the services they provide at home are often overlooked. Traditional norms have made it difficult for rural wo- men to get a loan, start a business, and access financial information that can influence the way they earn, bud- get, and spend money. Yet, women who are empowered and given the oppor- tunity to develop economically have made significant contributions to the growth and development of their community as well as the larger society. These women have established thriving businesses and reduced house- hold poverty, especially in the rural areas. Although urban centers, like Kabul, continue to grow and thrive in post-conflict Afghanistan, poverty is on the rise. Poverty in Afghanistan increased from 38.3 percent in 2012 to 54.5 percent in 2017, according to the Afghanistan Living Conditions Survey by the National over 25 provinces and received a warm welcome from Statistics and Information Authority. This is due to rural local government entities, people's representatives, wo- areas struggling to compete in the modern market. As a men, and the media. national push for development, the Afghan government has taken steps to engage rural areas where growth is Opportunities for business development stagnant according to poverty statistics. A woman who applies for a bank account needs to pro- In response to the growing poverty of rural women, duce a national identification card (Tazkira), but as most “ the Government of Afghanistan launched the Women’s rural women don’t have identity documents, the WEE- Economic Empowerment – Rural Development Project RDP plans to facilitate and support women’s applications (WEE-RDP) in October 2018. The project is a national for identity cards. We hope to see a surge in national Women who are empowered and given program that empowers rural women by helping them identity applications, which would help women register to mobilize into self-help groups, open small businesses, their businesses and seek loans. and access financial services. We learned from the Afghanistan Rural Enterprise the opportunity to develop economically Before rolling out any project in the rural areas, we asked ourselves which spheres we needed to invest in Development Program, the program that preceded WEE- RDP, that rural women represented a target group who have made significant contributions that could help alleviate poverty. Increasing women’s participation in the local economy and linking women were interested in business development, but were often ignored when it came to mobilizing resources for them. ” WEE-RDP will build on AREDP's work and reach the most to the growth and development of their producers with regional and national markets are lined up as key potential targets for WEE-RDP to achieve. With vulnerable women as we believe that to build a strong support from the project, rural women will create savings Afghanistan requires empowering women and providing community and the larger society. and credit groups that will help them start and expand businesses and enter new markets. them with equal opportunities for growth. The project will operate nationwide in 5,000 villages Rahmatullah Quraishi is the Executive Director of WEE-RDP in 76 districts throughout Afghanistan, where potential at the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development. rural businesswomen are expected to create income-ge- Yaqub Sulliman is the Regional Manager for WEE-RDP. nerating opportunities in Afghan villages that will bene- c This is an abridged version of a blog available at fit more than half a million rural people. https://blogs.worldbank.org/endpovertyinsouthasia/ Since its inception, WEE-RDP has started to work in empowering-rural-women-root-out-poverty-afghanistan Country Update/ ongoing operations 32/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/33 Trans-Hindukush ALASP will help strengthen an effective land Road Connectivity administration system in Afghanistan that provides Project transparent land services, contributing to stability c IDA Grant $250 million and growth. The project also focuses on women’s economic empowerment The project aims to support the government’s through policy efforts to improve road transport links across development to enhance the Hindukush mountain range, including ownership and inheritance of land and other family the rehabilitation of the Salang road and tun- assets. nel. It will develop existing mountain cross- ings into dependable, all-season roads that will allow the vital transport of passengers and goods to cross the Hindukush mountain range throughout the year. There are currently only two road cross- ings over the mountain range, with the Salang highway carrying most of the cross- Hindukush traffic and an unpaved second- ary crossing between Baghlan and Bamiyan. The project will carry out civil works for the upgrading of the Baghlan to Bamiyan (B2B) road (152 km) into a paved road as well as the rehabilitation of the Salang road and tunnel (87 km). Four out of the six segments along the B2B road are under construction, namely segments 1, 2, 5, and 6. The procurement process of segments, 3, 4a, and 4b are well advanced. The Construction Supervision Unit of the Ministry of Transport is supervising the / service delivery tributing to stability and growth; (ii) help tions from the Supreme Court to MUDL; as implementation of the segments under con- close the gaps and further develop the policy, part of this process, the Deeds Automation struction. Physical progress on segment 1 and segment 6 currently stands at roughly 23 per- Afghanistan Land legal and institutional framework for land ad- ministration; (iii) provide the building blocks Regulation and Procedures have been ap- proved, a deed automation test software cent and 15 percent of the work, respectively. Administration System for a modern land administration system in developed, and the Deed Automation Office The design consultancy for the Salang Tunnel rehabilitation has advanced as per Project (ALASP) Afghanistan; and (iv) support building capac- ity of the Ministry of Urban Development and opened in Herat; (b) preparation of the ad- ministrative, legal and technical implemen- schedule but the government has changed c IDA Grant $25 million Land (MUDL) and improving its governance tation approach document for OC issuance, the scope of the rehabilitation to include the c ARTF Grant $10 million structure to enhance institutional effective- taking into consideration lessons learnt and design of a new tunnel bore adjacent to the The project’s objective is to support the de- ness and accountability. challenges; (c) the Occupancy Certificates existing tunnel. This will require a time exten- velopment of the Afghanistan land adminis- The project also focuses on women’s Regulations were amended to reflect recom- sion on the consultancy work. tration system and provide the population in economic empowerment through policy mendations made during project preparation The grievance redress mechanism is op- selected areas with improved land registra- development to enhance ownership and in- to speed up OC issuance and manage social erational at various levels. Mid-term review tion services, including issuance of titles and heritance of land and other family assets. risks better; and (d) a five-year Strategy for of the project was completed on June 20, occupancy certificates (OCs). ALASP has made progress, including (a) ad- Women Empowerment and Gender Equity 2019. The outcome of the review suggests The project aims to (i) establish an effective vancing the transition to an administrative has been prepared and anti-harassment pro- that project restructuring should take place land administration system in Afghanistan form for deeds issuance, with the signing of cedures developed. soon, tentatively by June 2020. that provides transparent land services, con- a protocol for transferring deeds transac- Country Update/ ongoing operations 34/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/35 Eshteghal Zaiee – policy priorities by having more qualified and competent civil servants in key positions and Karmondena Project administrative reforms in 16 line ministries. (EZ-Kar) The project supports up to a total of 1,500 civil service positions to enable the ministries c IDA Grant $150 million to meet objectives and deliver on their priori- c ARTF Grant $50 million ties. The 1,500 positions include around 600 EZ-Kar aims at strengthening the enabling legacy positions from CBR. The Independent environment for economic opportunities in Administrative Reform and Civil Service cities where there is a high influx of displaced Commission (IARCSC) leads the project people. The project objective will be pursued implementation. by increasing returnees’ access to civil docu- TAGHIR will also help the government ments, providing short-term employment establish and operationalize a functional opportunities, improving market-enabling in- Human Resources Management Information frastructure, and supporting investor-friendly System (HRMIS) for over 400,000 civil serv- regulatory reforms. ants in the Afghan Civil Service. The project targets Afghan refugees liv- Progress toward achievement of the pro- ing in Pakistan and in 13 Afghan provincial ject objective and overall project implemen- capital cities with the highest influx of re- tation is currently rated as "Satisfactory". Key cent returnees. The 13 cities are Asadabad, implementation developments secured to Firozkoh, Herat, Jalalabad, Kabul, Kandahar, date include: Khost, Kunduz, Maimana, Mihtarlam, Paroon, Component 1: Human Resource Capacity Puli Khumri, and Taloqan. The project has five Injection. A total of 616 “legacy” CBR positions, components: identified by the government as strategically Component 1: Regional and national inte- relevant to the key higher-level objectives of gration of displaced persons. The component this component, has been fully transitioned is implemented by the Ministry of Foreign to TAGHIR. As part of the project's financing Affairs. partnership, the Pay & Grading (base) compo- Component 2: Short-term employment nent of these civil servants’ pay is now directly opportunities, reforms, and market-enabling financed on core government budget. infrastructure and municipal-level regula- For new human resource capacity injec- The EZ-Kar Project tory reforms in 12 cities implemented by the tion, strategic staffing plans and accompa- supports cities with the Independent Directorate of Local Governance highest influx of recent nying performance benchmarks have been (IDLG). returnees. It works to endorsed for 14 of the 16 priority ministries to mobilize communities to implement increase job opportunities Component 3: Prioritized urban invest- ments in four provincial capital cities—Herat, labor-intensive public works and market- for returnees and to Tackling Afghanistan’s and independent agencies. Strategic staffing plans have identified around 400 new staff- mobilize communities to Jalalabad, Kandahar, and Khost—implement- enabling subprojects through Community implement labor-intensive Government HRM ing positions, of which 34 have been recruit- Development Councils, Guzars, and Business public works and market- ed by IDLG. Component 4: Market-enabling infrastruc- Guzars. enabling projects through [Human Resource ed and a further 108 positions are in various stages of recruitment. Community Development tureandregulatoryreformsforKabulMunicipa- At the municipal level, prioritized urban Councils and other local Management] and Component 2: Personnel and Payroll lity implemented by Kabul Municipality. projects are being identified and developed councils. Management. Development of a national Component 5: Red carpet, project coordi- in Kabul Municipality and the four target Institutional Reforms HRMIS has been considerably advanced nation, and national-level regulatory reforms provincial capital cities. As part of support (TAGHIR) with six modules completed: (i) TASHKEEL: implemented by the Ministry of Economy, for business-friendly regulatory reforms, con- Organizational Structure; (ii) SAWANIH: struction permits regulatory reform action c IDA Grant $25 million which is also responsible for overall project Personnel Profile; (iii) Biometric Collection; (iv) plans have been finalized for the municipali- c ARTF Grant $50 million coordination. Biometric Enrollment; (v) TANZIMAT: Settings; The project was launched in February ties of Herat, Jalalabad, Kabul, and Kandahar, TAGHIR is a follow-on to the Capacity and (vi) Users. 2019. As of February 2020, it is finalizing the implementation of which will continue to Building for Results (CBR) Facility. It assists A Payroll module has been developed and the procurement of facilitating partners be supported by the project. the Government of Afghanistan deliver its key is currently under testing. Biometric and Country Update/ ongoing operations 36/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/37 biographic data collection, carried out in co- criteria to access 50 percent of the allocated Residents in Herat, ordination with the National Statistics and financing. Jalalabad, Kandahar, Khost, and Mazar-e-Sharif will Information Authority and in line with the On infrastructure development, 18 pri- benefit from support by biometric standards it has set, has been com- ority road projects are in various stages of the Urban Development pleted for over 338,000 civil servants of 52 procurement and civil works are expected to Support Project to municipal authorities to ministries and independent agencies in all 34 commence in the second quarter of 2020. improve city planning, provinces. An additional 100 priority projects have been management, and service Component 3: Support to Administrative identified and are in the process of feasibil- delivery capacity. Reforms. Following its amendment of the ity and detailed design. These projects will Civil Servants Law and its approval by Cabinet be implemented over the course of the next in March 2018, IARCSC has advanced in de- three years, covering medium-scale munici- veloping and enacting critical subsidiary pal infrastructure, including roads, parks, bus policies, regulations and procedures required stations, drainage, and streetlights. to support implementation of the amended In addition, the project has also begun law. These include a Civil Service Pay Policy; a working on institutional development. Work Policy for Increasing Women’s Inclusion; cus- has started on Own Source Revenue enhance- toms, human resources, and procurement ment strategies and baseline assessment for cadre regulations; a mass recruitment gener- the implementation of the Afghan Financial al procedure; and a Deputy Ministers recruit- Management Information System in the ment regulation. municipalities. IARCSC also has developed a new five-year strategic plan and is completing functional reviews of three line ministries and an inde- Urban Development pendent agency (the Ministry of Education; Support Project Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and c IDA Grant $11.47 million Livestock; Ministry of Communications and Information Technology; and the Supreme The project will support the Ministry of Urban Audit Office). Development and Housing (MUDH) to create an enabling policy framework and enhance urban policymaking capacity in relevant agen- / urban development cies at the national level, as well as strength- en city planning, management, and service delivery capacity in five selected provincial Cities Investment capital cities. These cities are Herat, Jalalabad, Institutional and Capacity Development. Undertaking a functional review of current dium-term development goals, based on a consultative stakeholder engagement pro- Program (CIP) Kandahar, Khost, and Mazar-e-Sharif. planning functions, practices, and capacities cess. The SDFs will draw from data inputs in The project consists of the following at MUDH and the five PCCs, and developing component 1, identify key challenges and c IDA Grant $25 million components: an action plan to address deficiencies in le- development goals, and propose activity and cARTF Grant $25 million Component 1: Urban Information: An gal/regulatory issues, processes, and staffing. investment plans to achieve them. The com- The project aims to introduce sustainable Urban Management Information System. Support for four “work streams” to provide di- ponent will also build a culture of planning municipal finance and management systems Technical assistance for the government to agnosis and recommendations on key policy through development of curriculum for ur- in nine participating provincial capital cities create a database and web architecture for areas, including urban planning and land use ban planning practitioners. (PCCs) and rehabilitate municipal infrastruc- key statistics, maps, and geographic informa- management; affordable housing; urban re- Component 4: Urban Investments: ture in five participating PCCs. tion system data to facilitate better urban generation; and municipal finance. Feasibility and Design Studies for Urban The project is providing financing for in- planning and results monitoring. Building a Component 3: Urban Integration: Infrastructure. Preparation of a pipeline of frastructure and institutional development municipal finance performance database to Strengthening Urban Planning at National priority projects (no regret, quick-win pro- to five PCCs—Herat, Jalalabad, Kandahar, support implementation of the Municipal and Local Levels. Financing the completion jects) in the five PCCs, including detailed fea- Khost, and Mazar-e-Sharif. All participating Incentive Fund. of Strategic Development Framework (SDF) sibility and design studies municipalities have met specific performance Component 2: Urban Institutions: for each of the PCCs that will identify me- 38/  Country Update/ / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/39 INTERNATIONAL FINANCE CORPORATION The International Finance Corporation’s key agribusiness program and scale up its exist- improve the livelihood of horticulture farm- prong of engagement has been through ing interventions through upstream work ers by linking them to fruit processing advisory support focused on improving the identifying, developing, and promoting in- companies through contract farming and investment climate and building capacity, vestment opportunities in the agriculture supporting processing companies to expand while supporting selective investments in sector to lift its development. their export markets. sectors with high development impact and job creation. IFC’s current strategy is alig- Afghanistan Raisins Supply Chain ned with the ongoing World Bank Group’s Development / advisory projects with goira Country Partnership Framework, 2017 to FY The project aims to support the develop- 2020 (extended to FY 2022). ment of raisin supply chains in Afghanistan Investment Climate by building the capacity of a raisin process- The program is designed to tackle business Investment Portfolio ing firm, implementing and managing food and investment climate challenges of the IFC provides a mix of investments services in safety systems, financial management, and country. The overarching goal of the program Afghanistan, with a focus on financial inclu- supply chain development, thus, creating a is to support improvements in the business sion, telecommunications, agribusiness, and best practice example for the rest of the in- environment and help the government facili- infrastructure. IFC’s current cumulative com- dustry in the country. tate investment and trade. mitted portfolio stands at over $238 million, The program aims to improve the quality including investment in Roshan Telecom, Corporate Governance (CG) of business regulations, strengthen mech- First Microfinance Bank, Afghanistan The CG project aims to address foundational anisms for trade facilitation and export International Bank, and Afghan Processing market failures in Afghanistan’s banking sec- promotion, and enhance mechanisms for in- Plant (Rikweda). tor. Through scoping activities, a combination vestment attraction and retention to reduce approach to create viable markets for solar IFC investments have had a transforma- of market failures has been identified at all private sector’s cost of compliance (cost sav- power in each client country. tional impact in access to finance and out- levels, i.e., individual bank, regulatory, and ings) in Afghanistan. IFC’s transaction advisory team is support- reach, particularly in the microfinance and sector. IFC is currently working to support the ing GoIRA to attract private sector partici- telecommunication sectors. IFC will con- IFC is working with banks to help them government in promoting an investment pation in the development of a solar power tinue to seek new investment opportunities improve firm performance (improved deci- and business climate that is conducive to plant of up to 40 MW under the Public Private and engage with local players to support the sion-making, risk management, operating private sector growth through the invest- Partnership model. development of Afghanistan’s private sector. efficiency, profit, and valuations) and increase ment climate program’s subprojects: (i) The first Scaling Solar project is located in The investment pipeline looks promising access to finance (reduced costs of capital, Business Licensing Reform Project: Phase II; Herat province (40 MW) and, being the larg- and includes investments in the power, edu- improved loan terms, and increased access to (ii) Business Enabling Environment Project; est renewable plant in the country, will have cation, and agribusiness sectors. investors) by promoting better CG practices and (iii) Agribusiness Export Competitiveness a significant impact on the energy landscape among the banks in Afghanistan. Project. as Afghanistan currently relies on imported electricity. / advisory projects with Strengthening Afghanistan Horticulture Scaling Solar the private sector Exports Scaling Solar is a “one stop shop” program IFC is working to develop Afghanistan’s hor- for governments to rapidly mobilize privately Afghanistan Agribusiness Mapping ticultural exports by helping agriculturists funded grid connected solar projects at com- The goal of the mapping exercise is to de- enhance efficiency and supporting the exten- petitive tariffs. The program brings together velop a list of companies with potential for sion of market opportunities, both nation- a suite of World Bank Group services under growth, as IFC is planning to build on its ally and internationally. This project aims to a single engagement based on a template 40/  Country Update/ / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/41 AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION TRUST FUND AFGHANISTAN RECONSTRUCTION The Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund Implementation Support, Technical TRUST FUND (ARTF) was established in 2002 to provide Assistance Facility (ASIST); and (iv) Anti- a coordinated financing mechanism for Corruption and Results Monitoring Action GoIRA’s budget and national investment Plan (ACReMAP). The objectives of the ARTF are to: projects. Since its inception, 34 donors The Recurrent Cost Window reimburses • Position the national budget have contributed over $12.27 billion to the the government for a certain portion of eligible and non-security related operat- as the key vehicle to align the ARTF, making it the largest single source of on-budget financing for Afghanistan’s ing expenditure every year. The Investment reconstruction program with Window provides grant financing for na- national development development. tional development programs in the develop- ment budget. objectives. Management The ARTF has a three-tier governance frame- ASIST was developed in answer to GOIRA’s • Promote transparency and work (Steering Committee, Management request to the World Bank to provide more accountability of reconstruction Committee and Administrator) and three direct hands-on advisory services, imple- mentation support, and technical assistance assistance. working groups. This sound framework has enabled the ARTF to adapt to changing cir- to ensure more effective implementation of • Reduce the burden on limited cumstances and development priorities with ARTF programs and strengthening of govern- government capacity while consistency and consensus. The World Bank ment institutions and capacity in the devel- opment and execution of national priority promoting capacity building is the administrator of the trust fund. The Management Committee consists programs. over time. of the World Bank, Islamic Development The “window” to fund ARCReMAP is a re- • Enhance donor coordination for Bank, Asian Development Bank, United doubling of the World Bank’s commitment financing and policy dialogue. Nations Development Programme, Ministry to further ramp up its efforts on anti-corrup- of Finance, and United Nations Assistance tion and results monitoring in Afghanistan, The Recurrent Cost Window (RCW) erating budget. Domestic revenues continue Mission in Afghanistan as an observer. The where the Bank had already applied a more The ARTF’s support of the to be insufficient to cover the costs of gov- stringent set of oversight mechanisms than Grant $5.057 billion Management Committee meets regularly in government’s priority programs, ernment. The ARTF RCW has therefore en- Kabul to review ARTF finances and approve elsewhere. The World Bank, as a trustee and The objective of the Recurrent Cost Window sured the basic functioning of government, funding proposals. administrator of the ARTF, is committed to policy reform agenda, and the is to provide a coordinated and incentive- including the delivery of services such as The ARTF Strategy Group, consisting of do- strengthening its fiduciary oversight of ARTF- non-security operating costs of driven financing mechanism, enabling the health care and education. Given that around nors and MoF, meets monthly to review the financed projects both to minimize risks of Afghan government to make predictable, government operations contri- 60 percent of the non-uniformed Afghan implementation of the ARTF program and to fraud, corruption, and misuse of funds and timely, and accurate payments for approved civil service is accounted for by teachers, the discuss strategic issues. to maximize the fund’s development impact. butes to the achievement of recurrent costs—related to salaries and wag- Ministry of Education has in general received Afghanistan’s national strategic es of civil servants, and non-security related about 40 percent of total ARTF resources. The How the ARTF works Donor Contributions government operating and maintenance goals. Ministries of Public Health, Foreign Affairs, Donors contribute funds into a single ac- Donor contributions have increased year expenditures. Labor and Social Affairs, and Higher Education count held by the World Bank in the USA. The after year, with both old and new donors The Recurrent Cost Window was set up in have also been major recipients. ARTF Management Committee makes deci- contributing to the ARTF. Over the last few 2002 to help the Afghan government meet It should also be highlighted that the RCW sions on proposed allocations at its regular years the “preferenced” portion of donor con- its recurrent (operating) budget needs. The resources are national in scope, ensuring the meetings, and those decisions are translated tributions has been the main factor driving RCW has been restructured several times, payment of salaries of around 62 percent of into funds through Grant Agreements signed growth. The agreed ARTF rule is that donors most recently in 2018. For the first time, RCW non-uniformed civil servants in all 34 prov- between the World Bank as administrator may not “preference” more than half of their support is being provided through standard inces of the country. Steady year-on-year in- of the trust fund and the Government of annual contributions. This rule is to ensure World Bank instruments, including an annual creases in operating costs across government Afghanistan. that the ARTF has sufficient funding to fi- $300 million Development Policy Grant sup- mean the RCW accounts for a declining share ARTF allocations are made through four nance the Recurrent Cost Window and that porting key structural and policy reforms. of the overall budget. Nevertheless, the RCW “windows”: (i) Recurrent Cost Window; (ii) it retains some flexibility in the approval of To date, the ARTF has disbursed $5 billion still finances around 16 to 20 percent of the Investment Window; (iii) Advisory Services, projects in support of government priorities. through the government’s non-security op- government’s non-security operating budget. Country Update/ artf 42/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/43 / ongoing projects Central Asia South Asia-1000 Afghanistan On-Farm Community Support Water Management Program (CASA-CSP) Project (OFWMP) Grant $40 million Grant $70 million CASA-CSP supports communities along the closed on december 31, 2019 CASA transmission line in Afghanistan. The The project objective was to improve agricul- project was restructured last year and is now tural productivity in project areas by enhanc- being implemented in alignment with the ing the efficiency of water used. Citizens’ Charter Afghanistan Project and in By its closure, OFWMP had made good close collaboration with CASA-1000. progress in achieving the agreed targets and Initially, the implementation was a chal- disbursing grant proceeds. The cumulative lenge because the route had not been final- disbursement rate reached 95 percent. ized and there were more route alignment By December 31, 2019, over 742 km of changes proposed for the transmission line, canals against the cumulative target of 186 while the agreement is that CSP will cover km, serving around 7,700 hectares of land, communities within the four-km “corridor of had been rehabilitated, while 621 Irrigation influence” (COI) along the transmission line. Associations against the target of 500 had However, as of February 2019, the final CASA- been established. 1000 transmission line has been finalized and The project-supported Farmer Call Center CSP has started mobilization activities along continues to receive calls from both male and the COI. female farmers and herders around the coun- Implementation has begun, with all agreed try and provides technical advice via a cadre positions filled, procurement processes re- of experts. By project end, over 47,000 farm- vised, and implementation and disburse- ers, about 4,300 of whom were women, had ment plans prepared and submitted to the contacted the center for technical assistance. World Bank. After the route was approved, The 120 Land Laser Leveling units distrib- the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Newly rehabilitated uted by the project to private operators con- Development carried out an initial mapping irrigation canals, such as tinue to provide services to farmers on a full of the communities along the COI and 461 this one, have resulted in cost basis. To date, about 1,400 hectares of communities were identified. even distribution of water, less water wastage, faster land have been served by these units. After the visit of the Implementation water flow, more cultivable The project team showcased high efficien- Support Mission, the number of communi- land, greater crop diversity, cy irrigation technologies at 51 demonstra- ties increased from 461 to 636 as a result of and better incomes for tion sites and supported 122 Farmer Field actual physical verification of communities farmers. The work of the now closed OFWMP has Schools, covering over 4,000 farmers. along the COI by MRRD engineers and social led to long-lasting benefits In addition, OFWMP provided support to organizers on the ground. for thousands of farmers the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Live- In addition, there are 395 communities in across the country. stock (MAIL) in various areas, including sur- areas not covered by the Citizens’ Charter. veying and designing several irrigation canals MRRD has started mobilization in 268 of to be financed by the ministry and other donor- these communities, but there are two dis- funded projects. This support among others tricts in Baghlan, and one each in Kunduz and included a feasibility study of the Khush Tepa, Laghman that are extremely insecure and Andkhoy, and Hairatan irrigation canal, which MRRD has not been able to enter these dis- flows through Faryab, Jowzian, and Balkh tricts as yet. provinces in northern Afghanistan; 60 gabion The communities that are overlapped by protection wall subprojects; five irrigation the Citizens’ Charter have been mobilized and schemes in the Nahr-e-Shahi canal of Balkh their Community Development Plans (CDPs) province; and 34 pipe irrigation schemes. revised. Country Update/artf 44/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/45 Overall, project implementation efforts prove its quality and relevance. HEDP uses have progressed well and social mobilization an Investment Project Financing instru- is well underway. In communities overlapping ment based on the Results-based Financing with the Citizens’ Charter, CSP social mobiliz- modality. ers have focused on subproject implementa- Under component one, project funds tion and building support for the transmission are being disbursed against selected line line and have satisfactorily communicated items in the annual budget of the Ministry the additional benefits provided by CSP to the of Higher Education (MoHE) up to capped targeted communities. To date, 48 subproject amounts, and on condition that the agreed proposals have been surveyed, designed, and set of disbursement-linked indicators (DLIs) prepared based on revised CDPs, out of which are achieved. 32 are in the MIS database for verification and The DLIs reflect the priorities for develop- disbursement. ment. These include intermediate outcomes that build cumulatively over the lifespan of HEDP to improve access to the higher DABS Planning education system and raise its quality and and Capacity relevance. This component supports the re- forms initiated through the National Higher Support Project Education Strategic Plan II and focuses on Grant $6 million outcomes and results rather than inputs. The project started in September 2015 and The project aims to improve Da Afghanistan MoHE is on track to meet the fourth round Breshna Sherkat (DABS) capacity in distribu- of the DLIs, which include training and prac- tion investment planning, implementation, tice of Outcome-Based Education (OBE) and and operation and maintenance. Student-Centered Learning (SCL) by at least This project has two components: 1,000 university academics, establishment Component 1: Staff capacity building, of functional ICT centers at seven universities which aims to support DABS capacity to plan for ICT-based higher education, and estab- and implement new investments in distribu- lishment of Internal Quality Assurance Units tion systems and to operate and maintain the functioning to international standards at 10 investments properly. universities. Component 2: Development of a train- Enrollment in key priority disciplines (those ing center in Kabul. DABS does not have any that contribute to economic and social de- training facility for its staff, and this has been velopment) has increased substantially identified as a critical gap in its overall capac- Construction of a new from 64,200 at the project baseline to about ity building efforts. training center for staff is 81,900 to date. The special focus on increas- construction of the training center was also underway under the DABS The project is supporting the preparation ing female enrollment has also paid sub- awarded in June 2019, with construction ac- Planning and Capacity and implementation of annual O&M plans Support Project. Project- stantial dividends with female enrollment tivities already started. Procurement of equip- for six major load centers using new proce- supported training and increasing from 11,400 to about 16,900. ment for the training center is delayed due to the new training center dures based on good international practice MoHE has developed a policy and by- an unsuccessful bidding process. However, are expected to improve adjusted for local conditions. The project- skills of 90 percent of DABS law for the practice of e-learning. This will DABS is currently working on alternative op- supported training and a new training center planning and O&M staff. support gradual introduction of blended tions for the procurement of the equipment. The project also provided are expected to improve skills of 90 percent of learning, incorporating e-learning into the opportunities for women DABS planning and O&M staff. university curriculum, as well as recognition Higher Education engineers to work at DABS. The project provided internship opportuni- of blended learning toward program credits. ty for new women engineering graduates to work in DABS. Twelve female engineers were Development Project In the pilot phase, a select number of on- line courses have been uploaded on AfghanEx hired as interns in DABS and assigned to dif- (HEDP) and supplement courses taught at public ferent departments. universities. AfghanEx has been developed Grant $55 million A contract with a consultancy firm for staff based on the EdEx platform for online teach- capacity building was signed in May 2019 HEDP aims to increase access to higher ing and learning. Promotion of e-learning in and training has started. The contract for education in Afghanistan, as well as im- higher education to improve access and qual- Country Update/artf 46/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/47 ity has become one of the key priorities of plan is underway, which will enhance Kabul MoHE. Municipality’s institutional capacity. The project received additional financing To date, about $81 million has been dis- of $5 million in 2018, mainly to expand the bursed. Nearly 1.5 million people (about 73 following successful project interventions percent women and children) have benefited to scale up project impact and development from the construction of about 590 kilometers effectiveness: (i) provision of faculty scholar- of neighborhood roads, 770 kilometers of com- ships (150 postgraduate scholarships to pub- munity drains, and 36 kilometers trunk roads. lic university academics in priority disciplines Under project component B, the World with one third allocated to female academ- Bank supported Kabul Municipality to im- ics); (ii) support to public universities to pre- plement institutional reforms, including the pare and implement Strategic Institutional rollout of the AFMIS core financial module Development Plans; (iii) training of teaching and purchasing module that covers budget faculty in OBE and SCL; and (iv) grants to sup- control, accounting, commitment and pay- port individual and group research projects at ment management, bank reconciliations, and universities. reporting functions of government financial The project closing date has been extended management. from December 31, 2020, to December 21, Moreover, Kabul Municipality has also im- 2022, to allow sufficient time for completion plemented payroll management and fixed of the additional activities and achievement asset and inventory management applica- of the final targets. tions developed by MoF, and streamlined the A second additional financing of $3 million development of a comprehensive revenue from IDA is being processed, which will sup- management module. port female enrollment, OBE and SCL, and the Kabul Municipality is hiring a consultancy development of an Afghanistan Research and firm to develop a case management system Education Network to improve teaching and for monitoring and timely follow up on citizen learning, and expand access to online educa- complaints and a document management tion resources. system to track, manage and store documents. The firm will also develop an IT strategy to support the needs and long-term objectives Kabul Municipal of Kabul Municipality. In addition, the firm Development Program will facilitate capacity building of the mu- nicipality’s finance and administration staff. (KMDP) Temporary employment of some 2.9 mil- Thousands of Kabul residents are enjoying Grant $110 million lion people has been generated through the better air quality and Kabul Municipality is responsible for imple- execution of contracts with labor intensive cleaner streets after a roadworks project Kabul Urban work at an investment of $223/person per menting the project. The project objectives month. Durable infrastructure will generate paved the dirt streets and built drains in their Transport Efficiency are to (i) increase access to basic munici- pal services in selected residential areas of secondary employment in the years ahead. neighborhood. The project, carried out by the KMDP Improvement Project Importantly, KMDP has established a strong Kabul city; (ii) redesign Kabul Municipality’s foundation for gender inclusive community has reduced air pollution caused by poor street (KUTEI) Financial Management System to support participation in decision-making over public conditions. “We have Grant $90.5 million better service delivery; and (iii) enable early re- much less dust on our expenditures in Guzars (neighborhoods). sponse in the event of an eligible emergency. streets and our children KUTEI aims to improve road conditions and are healthier now,” says a KMDP is expected to deliver welfare and resident. traffic flow on select corridors of Kabul city. human development benefits to over 1 mil- The project will focus on improving road in- lion people through services provided in frastructure and providing technical assis- some 3,000 hectares of private land. The pro- tance to Kabul Municipality in specific areas. ject also supported development of a plan Investments in key road infrastructure to improve the municipality’s financial man- will improve connectivity and make Kabul agement and planning capacity to deliver im- more inclusive, while technical and knowl- proved services. The implementation of the edge support will gradually transform Kabul Country Update/ artf 48/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/49 Municipality into a modern planning and for NHPP staff training was advertised on Naghlu Hydropower Plant, Afghanistan’s implementing agency by adopting best in- September 2019 and the shortlist is expect- largest hydropower ternational practice. Kabul Municipality ed to be finalized in March 2020. The bidding facility, is running at full will be responsible for project implementa- document for supply of spare parts for five capacity after extensive rehabilitation. The facility tion, including procurement and financial years of operations and maintenance of the was restored under the management. power plant will be finalized and advertised Naghlu Hydropower Project objectives will be measured against in April 2020. Rehabilitation Project as part of the government’s the following indicators: (i) traffic capacity Work on dam safety enhancement is also aim to increase domestic improvements, measured by average vehi- underway. Submersible water pumps have energy production, cle speed during off-peak hours; (ii) people been installed inside the dam’s drainage gal- which will help reduce Afghanistan’s dependence (within a 500-meter range) in urban areas lery to release upward water pressure. The on imported energy. provided access to all-season roads; and (iii) contract for procurement of two additional percentage of Kabul city’s trunk road network pumps, required to completely drain both in at least “fair” condition. galleries, is signed and the pumps are ex- Project implementation is progressing pected to be installed in April 2020. well and all planned civil works contracts A bathymetric survey of the Naghlu dam have been awarded. To date, nine civil works reservoir will be performed by DABS per- contracts, totaling 32 kilometers of road- sonnel with support from the Ministry of way, have been completed and the roads are Energy and Water and Food and Agriculture opened to traffic. Implementation of the re- Organization (FAO) team. DABS undertook maining four civil works contracts started market research and, with the advice of the early this year and all the contracts are ex- FAO expert, purchased an eco-sounder. The pected to be completed by June 30, 2020. FAO expert provided Naghlu plant personnel The project will close on December 31, 2020. training on conducting the bathymetric sur- vey using the eco-sounder in January 2020. Naghlu Hydropower The bathymetric survey is expected to be conducted in April 2020. Rehabilitation Project Terms of reference for hiring a consultancy (NHRP) firm to carry out a dam safety and hydrome- chanical audit were finalized and the tenders Grant $83 million advertised in March 2019. After the shortlist- NHRP aims to improve dam safety and sus- ing process, three shortlisted firms sent their tainability of hydropower and to increase proposals in February 2020, which are now the supply of electricity at the Naghlu under evaluation by DABS. Hydropower Plant (NHPP). NHPP is of stra- The contract for the associated procure- for the local population, which includes elec- RESULTS EXPECTED UNDER THE NHRP tegic importance to Afghanistan's power ment of a consultancy firm for conduct- trification of villages in surrounding districts. • Revived 50 MW of previously nonoperational capacity of Naghlu Hydropower Plant by generation portfolio as it provides more than ing the Environmental and Social Impact Construction of the Sorobi 20 MW substation half of Kabul's electricity. Assessment (ESIA) of Naghlu dam is expected was completed in April 2019, supplying pow- rehabilitating Unit 1 and overhauling Unit 3. The project came into effect in January to be signed in March 2020. As the ESIA audit er to some Sorobi villages. Extension of the • Improved routine operation and maintenance of the power plant for five years. 2016. In November 2018, NHPP started op- results for proper management of sediment distribution system to 17 out of 18 villages in • Improvement of Naghlu Dam safety measures and re-activation of the dam bottom outlet erating at full capacity (100 MW) after the will be available only later, DABS will perform Sorobi district has been completed. Villages / flash out gate. rehabilitation of turbine units 1 and 3. Unit an internal interim sediment assessment in Tagab district have been surveyed and the 2 also requires overhauling as it has operated and prepare a limited environmental assess- distribution system is at design stage. • Enhanced staff capacity to operate and maintain the power plant. continuously without any major overhaul for ment report. Sediment has been delivered to The project also included vocational train- • Residents living near NHPP connected to electricity and facilitated NHLP extension more than 40,000 hours. The bidding docu- GSG laboratory in India and the result of the ing for villagers. However, during consulta- services, i.e., poultry farming, kitchen gardening, and establishment of orchards. ment for overhauling this unit has been fi- interim sediment assessment is expected tion with the villagers, it was agreed that • Enhanced security and safety measures of the NHPP. nalized after extensive review by the World to be available by April 2020. Based on this instead of vocational training, the project Bank and National Procurement Authority, result, the bidding document for sediment will facilitate extension of services of the • Renovate and revive full capacity of Darunta Hydropower Plant. and the request for a bid will be advertised in assessment and selective removal, including National Horticulture and Livestock Project. • Preparation of ESIA and RAP for Kajaki II project. March 2020. unexploded ordnance, will be finalized. Under the first phase that started in January The request for expression of interest NHRP also has a benefit-sharing program 2019, poultry and training of its upkeep Country Update/ artf 50/  / The World Bank Group in Afghanistan/51 ship with Community Development Councils. are being provided to 13 villages in Sorobi To strengthen market supply, a large num- district. ber of the targeted farmers, both male and Further, the project supports preparation female, have been trained on harvesting work of the Kajaki dam addition. The project and post-harvest practices for horticultural management team is under recruitment at crops. They have also been provided with a MEW. The project manager and the national large number of essential tools (e.g., pruning environmental specialist have been hired, shears, ladders, bags) for proper harvesting of while a national social specialist and two their products. international social and environmental con- Farmers are encouraged to work together sultants are under procurement. through the establishment of Producers Mar- The shortlisting process has been complet- keting Organizations (PMOs) with 108 PMOs ed for a consultancy service firm to develop set up so far, having a membership of over the ESIA and a Resettlement Action Plan 1,900 farmers. This structure helps farmers (RAP) for phase 2 of the project. with outsourced inputs and access to markets. Following a formal request from MoF, the Over 2,000 raisin drying houses have been project will be restructured to include the constructed on a cost-sharing basis to reduce rehabilitation and renovation of the Darunta post-harvest losses of grapes and improve the Hydropower Plant, and the project closing quality of raisins produced. date will be extended. Three units will be re- Regarding livestock activities, NHLP con- newed, and an administrative building and tinues to focus on key activities, including warehouse will be constructed inside the poultry production and animal health and ex- power plant. tension services, while expanding work pro- The bidding document for this activity grams to other areas such as fishery and dairy. was completed and social and environmen- Under the National Brucellosis Control tal impact documents were prepared and Program in 360 districts, about 17 million cleared by the World Bank. The tender for animals have been vaccinated against brucel- design, supply, installation, and commission- losis diseases. More than 2.5 million young ing of Darunta power plant was advertised female calves and over 13.5 million young in July 2019. The bid evaluation report has Under the NHLP, pioneer farmers are helping fellow female sheep and goats have been vacci- been approved by the World Bank and will farmers improve their nated. To ensure sustainability, the project be presented to the National Procurement horticultural practices and is gradually handing over this activity to the Committee, and the contract is expected to increase their income. The agricultural services systems and investment 580,000 farmers/beneficiaries, including pioneer farmers receive General Directorate of Animal Health under be signed by May 2020 upon approval. support. around 242,000 women. NHLP training and help the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and extend the reach of the The project has three components: (i) hor- To date, NHLP has financed the establish- Livestock. National Horticulture ticultural production; (ii) animal production ment of almost 32,520 hectares (ha) of new project by teaching other farmers, reaching over To date, the project has supported 205,360 and Livestock Project and health; and (iii) implementation manage- ment and technical assistance support. These pistachio and fruit orchards in 34 provinces. In addition, over 32,000 ha of existing or- 700,000 farmers across the country. “NHLP has helped livestock farmers (136,088 women and 69,272 men), clustering them into producers’ (NHLP) activities were initially implemented in 120 chards have been rehabilitated and more me understand farming,” says a pioneer farmer. groups, including poultry producer groups, to Grant $190 million focus districts in 23 target provinces. than 143,000 kitchen gardening schemes “I am very happy with benefit from animal production and health the work they have done The original budget of the project was established. services. It has also extended its activities to Afghan Farmers’ Contribution for us.” $100 million, but based on the high demand The project has supported construction of new geographical areas under sanitary man- $28.2 million for NHLP services, the project received an ad- about 1,300 small water harvesting struc- date activities and is supporting MAIL’s rel- NHLP aims to promote the adoption of im- ditional financing of $90 million to allow ex- tures, improving farmers’ resilience to weath- evant directorate to implement them. proved production and post-harvest practices pansion of its work programs to more farmers er change by allowing harvest and storage of NHLP activities are based on cost sharing, and technologies by target farmers in the hor- and add new activities. water during the rainy season and gradual accordingly it is expected that farmers will ticultural sector and to support the livestock The project covers 291 districts in all release in the growing period based on crop contribute $28.2 million to the cost of ser- sector, with gradual rollout of farmer-centric 34 provinces, and, so far, has reached over needs. This has been implemented in partner- vices and inputs received. Country Update/ artf 52/  results high-density farming diversifies crops and boosts farmers’ incomes • High-density farming, which increases yields without increasing planting space, has shown to be highly effective in Bamyan province, where farmers grow vegetables between their fruit trees. • The strategy and modern technique, introduced by the National Horticulture and Livestock Project, means greater crop diversification and better incomes for farmers. • Greater diversification has stabilized local food prices and provided more sources of income as farmers are less reliant on a single crop. O n a neat patch of land enclosed by a chain-link fence just outside of Bamyan city center, Ami- nullah, 52, and his three employees are busy tending his crops. Although the farm in Sar Asyab village is just 2 jeribs (0.4 hectares), it keeps the four men busy because of its adoption of high-density planting. Amin grows a variety of flowering and root vegetables, such as cabbage and white radish, between his 450 apple trees. Today, Amin is teaching his workers how to spray the apple trees to protect them against disease, a technique he learned from National Horticulture and Livestock Project (NHLP) staff, who taught him the techniques of high-density planting as well as provided the medicine to spray the trees. The techniques of high-density farming allow farmers to use their land more efficiently, increasing yields wit- hout increasing space devoted to planting. More impor- “ tantly, high-density farming shows farmers without density farming program does not give participants much land that they too can make a living from farming, funds, but instead supplies them with various plants, contrary to the common belief that successful farming is tree saplings, and supplies, such as pesticides, to start land intensive. and upkeep their farms. NHLP staff provide constant years since I began It has been three Amin is among the thousands of farmers in Bamyan guidance to farmers under the program. province benefiting from high-density farming with Crop Diversification a Success high-density farming with NHLP help and NHLP support. “The high-density orchards have been 100 per cent successful because it has good results,” says Mohammad Nabi Sirat, 36, NHLP provincial manager in ” Amin, who adopted the new technique in 2015. Bamyan, believes that the crop diversification through in another two years, my [annual] His income has doubled from his previous income generated by cultivating apples alone. “Now I can profit high-density planting is the greatest NHLP achievement in the province. Greater diversification has stabilized lo- income will quadruple. from both the ‘upper’ and ‘lower’ levels of my farmland,” cal food prices and provided more sources of income as Amin says. He expects to see a further rise in his income in the next two years. “It has been three years since I farmers are less reliant on a single crop, he says. “Before the NHLP program started its work in Bamyan, began high-density farming with NHLP help and in ano- local farmers produced [mainly] potatoes. This made –Aminullah, farmer, Sar Asyab village, Bamyan province ther two years, my [annual] income will quadruple to the price of potatoes low and the price of other produce 250,000–300,000 afghanis (about $3,300–3,900),” he high in the local markets,” Nabi explains. “We have now says. established around 4,000 new high-density orchards in Amin’s high-density farm was set up on an NHLP bud- Bamyan province, which not only grow fruits, but also a get of 60,000 afghanis (about $790). The NHLP high- variety of vegetables. We supply them the seeds to do so.” Country Update/ artf 54/  and conduct relevant analytic work; and (iii) establish and operate an Innovation Fund to support women’s economic activities. Despite a slow start, implementation pro- gress of the WEE-NPP Coordination Support PPG has improved considerably. The WEE-NPP Secretariat is functioning well and shifted from the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs (MoLSA) to MoF in October 2019. WEE-NPP action plans and targets for the current fiscal year that have been agreed on by the major- ity of the implementing line ministries are in place. Furthermore, the Monitoring and Results Framework for the program has been de- veloped, but has yet to be approved by the WEE-NPP Steering Committee. The Steering The WEE-NPP is working to Committee and technical working group advance women’s agency meet regularly. by expanding their access The upcoming closing of the PPG in July to economic resources. It is working with other development projects to Women’s Economic 2020 and the transition from MoLSA to MoF has occasioned a review of the challenges provide job opportunities, better infrastructure, and Empowerment faced by the overall program and a discus- economic opportunities for National Priority sion about a potential Phase 2 of WEE-NPP. women. The program has faced numerous chal- Program (WEE-NPP) lenges during implementation, including Grant $5 million frequent staff turnover, slow progress, and a complex design for evidence-based budget- The objective of the WEE-NPP is to advance ing and coordination across line ministries women’s agency, autonomy, and well-being that has not come to fruition. by expanding women’s access to economic A second phase would offer a chance to resources. redesign the program, add new activities, The WEE-NPP is led by a Project Co- and create more effective incentives for ordination Office (PCO) in the Ministry of line ministries to deliver on their WEE-NPP Finance. The PCO is responsible for oversee- commitments. ing WEE-NPP activities across six pillars: (i) increasing the availability of gender sta- tistics; (ii) removing legal barriers to par- ticipation; (iii) training in literacy, business management, and labor skills; (iv) inclusive access to finance; (v) access to agricultural inputs, extension services, and markets; and (vi) access to creative economy markets. The three-year Project Preparation Grant (PPG) has three components: (i) coordina- tion and program management; (ii) provide Note: All dollar figures are in US dollar equivalents. technical assistance and capacity building IDA, the International Development Association, is the for line ministries carrying out WEE activities World Bank’s concessionary lending arm. The World Bank Group in Afghanistan Abdullah Yadgare phone +93 701 133 373 infoafghanistan@worldbank.org House 238, Street 15, Wazir Akbar Khan, Kabul, afghanistan www.worldbank.org.af /WorldBankAfghanistan /WorldBankSAsia photos and cover photo © Rumi Consultancy/World Bank/2020. ©World Bank, APRIL 2020.