Dream road vs. bad track record
Dream road vs. bad track record
by Waheed Orya, Charkent
A new road linking Balkh Province's Charkent District to the remote village of Qalaghaj is under construction and should be completed within a year with funding from the German government. But critics say shoddy work and corruption that plagued previous road projects must be avoided if the new 37-kilometre route is to stand a chance of turning life around for the recipients. read more
by Waheed Orya, Charkent
by Storay Karimi, Herat
The Ebony Photo Centre in Herat trains women to be photographers and film makers, bringing critical new eyes into the frame, empowering new voices in western Afghanistan. Earlier this year the centre co-ordinated the first ever Women's International Film Festival, held in a historic centre in Herat. Now the challenge is to survive. read more
by Imran Waak, Asadabad
The Innovators: Afghan Device healing bone-by-bone
The Innovators: Afghan Device healing bone-by-bone
by Masood Momin, Kabul
Two Afghan surgeons have developed a bone reconstruction tool that has slashed recovery time and cost for patients in therapy. While cheaper imitations have appeared, a leading medical multinationals has acquired the patent and plans to mass produce 'Afghan Device'. Masood Momin reports. read more
by Mohammad Jawad, Kabul
The logistics business is one of the most lucrative and murkiest aspects of international security operations in Afghanistan. Involving backroom dealings and hundreds of millions of dollars, the stakes are high, as is the alleged involvement of the Afghan political elite. So who’s running the show, what are the scams, and what will happen as business tails off with foreign troop withdrawals? In this special report, AT looks under the tarpaulins. read more
The Innovators: Trials of a trailblazer
The Innovators: Trials of a trailblazer
by Samira Sadat, Kabul
Rajab Ali Andishmand has invented traffic safety devices, guillotine scissors for steel, even a drone prototype. He is the founder of the Afghanistan Association of Intellectual Properties and has won awards in and outside of Afghanistan. All he and many other mechanically talented countrymen need now is for their own government to take notice. read more
Fragile future for the glass masters
Fragile future for the glass masters
by Asma Aslami, Herat
Formerly home to dozens of producers who in ancient times rivaled the world’s best, all that remains of Herat's glass making industry is one factory and three veteran artisans. But the government hopes a museum can save the industry from extinction. read more
by Mohammad Jawad, Kabul
The logistics business is one of the most lucrative and murkiest aspects of international security operations in Afghanistan. Involving backroom dealings and hundreds of millions of dollars, the stakes are high, as is the alleged involvement of the Afghan political elite. So who’s running the show, what are the scams, and what will happen as business tails off with foreign troop withdrawals? In this special report, AT looks under the tarpaulins. read more
Lucky for some: Where goes the lapis wealth?
Lucky for some: Where goes the lapis wealth?
by Khushqadam Usmani, Faizabad
Mined in Badakhshan, the royal blue lapis lazuli gemstone has for thousands of years won favour around the world in jewellery designs and carvings. Exquisite yet affordable and said to bring luck and happiness, it has instead become a source of bitterness and conflict in its place of origin. read more
by Khushqadam Usmani, Faizabad
by Fawzia Ihsan, Kabul
A little over a decade ago, the notion of women running businesses in Afghanistan was fantastic, unreal, dangerous. But despite ongoing challenges, dozens now run shops, companies and associations of businesswomen. And thanks to momentum and peer support, more are poised to follow. read more
by Mohammad Yasir Sharifi, Jalalabad
With few pharmaceutical producing companies of its own, Afghanistan relies heavily on imports of medicines from Pakistan, Iran, China and India. While the government says it monitors quality, consumers and doctors say imports are increasingly expired or have no effect, are sold by unqualified and illiterate shop staff, and often cause further sickness or even death. read more
Ainak: Mining model that promised the earth
Ainak: Mining model that promised the earth
by Rahmat Alizada, Ainak
The Ainak copper mine was to be a showpiece for ventures to tap Afghanistan’s vast mineral wealth, while providing opportunities for local communities. Five years after the almost three-billion-dollar investment deal with a Chinese consortium was inked, the site’s riches remains underground, while the first grievances over implementation are surfacing. read more
by Naqib Ahmad Atal, Marawara District
Illegal under the current government as they were under Taliban rule, poppy crops in Kunar are periodically destroyed by both sides in a rare alignment of policy. But opium revenues are still a key source of insurgent finances: a few kilometres on, Taliban cultivate their own poppy farms while government troops stand back. read more
The Innovators: Afghan Device healing bone-by-bone
The Innovators: Afghan Device healing bone-by-bone
by Masood Momin, Kabul
Two Afghan surgeons have developed a bone reconstruction tool that has slashed recovery time and cost for patients in therapy. While cheaper imitations have appeared, a leading medical multinationals has acquired the patent and plans to mass produce 'Afghan Device'. Masood Momin reports. read more
Ebb and flow of the (in)security market
Ebb and flow of the (in)security market
by Afghanistan Today writers, Kabul
Conflict and exploding bombs will harm the economy of any city, either by causing direct damage or through their wider impact on trade and services. But for security equipment companies working the market in Kabul, business is, for want of a better word, booming. read more
Struggling for survival in a free market economy
Struggling for survival in a free market economy
by Mohayudin Noori, Herat
Many Afghan businesses cannot compete with cheap imports from neighbouring countries. In the once sprawling business town of Herat alone, 240 factories have already closed. Manufacturers here accuse Iranian competitors of price dumping and are calling for higher import tariffs read more
