Building on previous successes, the National Rural Access Programme (NRAP) will be extended to improve additional stretches of road in the villages of Safidkhar, Sofian and Aabbordeh in the volatile Uruzgan province in southern Afghanistan.

A tripartite agreement has been signed with UNOPS, the governments of Afghanistan and Australia through AusAID (Australian Agency for International Development) to extend UNOPS support services for the Afghan Government’s rural roads program.

NRAP is the government’s major road program, executed jointly by the Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) and the Ministry of Public Works (MPW) with implementation support from UNOPS.  NRAP aims to promote equitable economic growth by ensuring year-round access to basic services and facilities nation-wide.  Since the beginning of the program, NRAP has implemented activities covering all 34 provinces of Afghanistan.

Australia has been supporting NRAP since 2006 and has provided over USD 6.2 million for road improvements across the country, including in Uruzgan province. In 2008, under the NRAP framework, an Australian-funded project rehabilitated 13 km of roads in Kotwal, Charmgar and Safidkhar villages situated in the Tirin Kot district, improving access to Tirin Kot city for an estimated 4,800 households. The road works have generated over 18,000 days of labor for local residents.

The additional 5.5km of road works will be implemented by the communities directly and are designed to generate up to 20,000 labor days of employment for the residents in the area. AusAID’s support will provide resources for UNOPS to work closely with MRRD in Uruzgan to improve project management skills and quality processes including oversight of technical standards, timelines and budgets.

The project will be completed by March 2010. It is expected that the road improvements will extend connectivity to an additional 4,500 people and further improve access to Tirin Kot city centre. 

“We remain committed to being of service to our donors and the Government of Afghanistan, even in the remote and high risk areas throughout the country,” said UNOPS Director Bruce McCarron.