Significant progress made in construction of health clinic in Farah Province

Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) Farah met with the lead contractor and the Shib Koh district sub-governor to provide an assessment of the progress being made on the construction of Ken Clinic, a new health clinic in Ken village in Shib Koh district. Over 20 locally hired workers have made significant construction progress with the clinic, according to Dawoud, lead contractor of the project. The clinic officially broke ground on April 20 and is expected to be complete within one to two months.

“The project is going very well and we expect it to be complete very soon,” said Dawoud. The clinic will provide free health care to local villagers and a wide variety of medical services will be available. The 5,000 square foot clinic will be located in the District Center of the Ken village. More than twenty local Afghans have been employed for the project, making it an important counterinsurgency (COIN) effort. By employing locals, trust is given to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, leaving less opportunity for the Taliban to influence Afghan communities. Funding for health care in Farah Province is provided through the World Bank. From there, funds are implanted through Ministry of Health and a Non-governmental Organization, Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance, which implements the Basic Package of Health Services.

U.S. Navy Lieutenant Matt Beach of Springfield, Ohio, Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) Farah engineering officer, meets with Dawoud, the lead contractor of the Ken Clinic construction, in Ken village, Shib Koh district, Afghanistan, May 17, 2010. The PRT and Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan officials were assessing the construction of the new health clinic, which has made significant progress since the clinic broke ground on April 20. The clinic will provide free health care to local villagers and a wide variety of medical services will be available. More than twenty local Afghans have been employed for the project and the construction is projected to be complete within one to two months.