PRT: BADGHIS: AN ALMOST FORGOTTEN PROVINCE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 005180 SIPDIS DEPARTMENT FOR SA/FO, SA/A, S/CT, EUR/RPM NSC FOR AMEND AND HARRIMAN OSD FOR BREZINSKI REL NATO/AUST/NZ/ISAF CENTCOM FOR CG CFC-A, CG CJTF-76 USAID FOR AID/ANE/ AID/DCHA/DG E.O. 12958:N/A TAGS: PGOV PREL PTER KDEM PINR EAID SNAR AF SUBJECT: PRT: BADGHIS: AN ALMOST FORGOTTEN PROVINCE ¶1. Summary: In one of the poorest countries in the world, Badghis is one of (out of 34) the poorest provinces in Afghanistan. There is no paved road network, no electricity except for a few small generators, and no radio reception outside the capital of Qal I Now. Apart from its presence in Qal I Now, the GOA has little reach in the province. A newly installed Spanish Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) is helping to provide security and is building several major infrastructure projects. USAID and several NGOs are also active. There is little anti-government or terrorist activity, although armed criminal gangs are present in several districts. Poppy cultivation is on the rise and Badghis is also a transit route for drugs. End Summary. -------------- Background -------------- ¶2. Badghis (Persian for Land of Winds) is located in northwest Afghanistan and borders Turkmenistan in the North, Faryab and Ghor provinces to the East, and Herat province to the West and South. The only significant road inside the province leads to Herat; it is sometimes closed during the winter because of snow. The population of approximately 400,000 is predominantly Tajik. The next largest ethnic group is Uzbek, and there are also Pashtun and Baluch groups, , particularly in the North of the province. ¶3. Like most rural areas of Afghanistan, there is no industry, and small amounts of trade. The economy is based on agricultural cultivation and livestock. Badghis is renowned for pistachios but, according to the provincial director of agriculture, almost half the forests have been destroyed in the last 20 years for firewood. With an insignificant budget to protect the forests, depletion continues. ¶4. According to local officials, poppy cultivation is on the rise. The agricultural director told PRT officer that opium poppys comparatively high price, combined with limited provincial law enforcement capacity, police corruption, and the isolated nature of much of the province, make it an attractive crop. The provincial NSD opined to PRT officer that eradication is the only potential solution. Because of its ;location between Turkmenistan and Herat, Badghis is also a transit venue for drugs. -------------- The Short Reach of the Central Government -------------- ¶5. There are no paved streets or roads in the province, and the actual dirt roads are in very poor condition. A forty-kilometer trip to the nearest district capital can take between two and three hours. Trips to outlying district capitals can take as long as ten hours. Provincial officials therefore make few trips to the districts. ¶6. There is only one radio station in Badghis. Based in Qal I Now, Radio Qal I Now was resurrected by the Spanish with used equipment (it transmitted with Russian equipment during the Soviet occupation and Taleban time). Its range is about 20 kilometers, although due to hills and mountains its signal cannot always be received within this radius. With this limited reception, most of the province cannot receive provincial, national, or world news. (Note. PRT officer discussed with the PRT director of the Spanish aid agency (Spanish Agency for International Cooperation or AECI) the possibility of enhanced equipment and repeaters to increase transmission of the station throughout the province. This could also go a long way to extending the authority and reach of and scattered generators, there is no electricity in Badghis. ¶7. Governor Enayatullah Enayat has been in his current position for about eight months. His status as an outsider, originally from Faryab province, his failure to travel much around the province, and the fact he has been absent from Qal I Now for the eight months he has been in office, has detracted from his authority. The provincial police chief is acting governor, but general lack of esteem for the police has prevented him from earning respect in this capacity. -------------- Security - Relative Calm -------------- ¶8. In June 2004, in a widely-publicized international incident, five staff members of the French NGO Doctors Without Borders (MSF) were ambushed and killed in Qadis district. Citing concerns about security and the failure of the GOA to make arrests, MSF closed down its Afghanistan program. A year later, the Qadis police chief whose family allegedly controlled opium trafficking in the district, as well as a Mullah with suspected Taleban ties, were arrested for the crime. ¶9. Since the MSF incident, the province has enjoyed relative calm. According to the provincial National Security Directorate (NSD) director, there is virtually no Taleban activity in the province, although some remnants of the Taleban regime are believed to be living in Badghis. Individual rocket attacks, one on the airport and one on Qal I Now, occurred in October and November; the perpetrators are unknown. The main threat to security is caused by criminal gangs, particularly the Goliah, a Pashtun sub-tribe in Ghormach district on the Turkmenistan border, which has long been engaged in livestock rustling and common banditry. ¶10. An Afghan National Army (ANA) battalion was stationed in Qal I Now and occasionally traveled in the province, providing a GOA security presence. It was withdrawn to Herat in November because of inadequate winter accommodation and inability to bring food supplies to Qal I Now. ISAF and the PRT support its return to Badghis since, in its absence, the only provincial security force is the under-equipped and corrupt Afghan National Police (ANP). The GOA has not yet indicated whether the ANA will return to Badghis. The provincial NSD director opposes the Anas return because almost all of its members come from other provinces, and in his opinion, the local population therefore opposes its presence. -------------- Spanish Focus on Development -------------- ¶11. The Spanish government established the PRT in May. There are approximately 130 military and four civilians an ambassador from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs who serves as the civilian representative of the PRT and supervises development efforts, two o representatives of the AECI, and an engineer. ¶12. The Spanish military conducts daily patrols in Qal I Now and infrequently travels to the rest of the province in order to maintain peace and security. (Note. PRT military officials explain that duties in Qal I Now, including providing force protection for its civilian development activities, and the poor provincial roads, make more frequent travel difficult. End Note.) The military also provides force protection for travel to and at AECI projects. A civilian- military (CIMIC) team prints a small number of newspapers in Dari providing news of the province and of PRT activities; provides small amounts of humanitarian assistance, such as blankets for winter and food; and does quick impact projects including mosque, orphanage, and soccer field refurbishments, and digging of wells. Finally, it maintains relations with local officials. ¶13. A primary focus of the PRT is development. AECI has provided a three-year EUR 10 million (USD 12 million) budget. Significant projects are: --Construction of a 55 kilometer road from Qal I Now to the border with Herat province. (Note and Comment. Iran plans to construct a road of about 100 kilometers from Herat to Badghis. Once both sections are finished, the current driving time, now as much as ten hours, will be reduced to about three hours. This will significantly open up the province to trade and will facilitate the travel of the ANA from Herat to Badghis. End Note and Comment.) --Construction of a potable water system for Qal I Now --Construction of a vehicle bridge across the river in Qal I Now that separates the town from the airstrip and the road to Herat --Construction of a provincial hospital --Construction of 17 pedestrian bridges across rivers in the province ¶14. In general, there is less foreign assistance in Badghis than in many other provinces. USAID has been active since 2002 and has been principally focused on construction of schools. World Vision, DACAAR (French) and Brac (Bangladeshi) also work in the province and have concentrated mostly on potable water and irrigation. ¶15. Comment. Badghis remoteness, relative tranquility, and absence of significant Taleban activity have resulted in little attention from Kabul. The presence of the PRT in Qal I Now is helping to extend the reach of the central government, but most of the province remains forgotten. End comment. NEUMANN