3000 people temporarily hired to work with Qalat municipality

QALAT (Pajhwok)): Three thousand people have been provided temporary jobs in southern Zabul province with financial support of the United Nations World Food Program.

Ziaul Haq Zahid, urban governance head at Qalat Municipality, told Pajhwok that 3,000 residents of different areas have been hired to work against cash with financial support of the World Food Program and technical cooperation of the Green Kandahar Reconstruction Organization (GKRO).

He said the hired individuals would work to keep Qalat city, the provincial capital, clean, pave streets, establish green areas and take care of plants within the framework of the municipality.

Zahid said these people were hired for three months against a monthly salary of 4,300 afghanis, but the project might be extended to nine months. He said as part of the project, needy families who were without guardians would be given food.

Besides cleanliness, he said, the municipality also worked to reconstruct the city. Recently, the municipality constructed 10 kilometers of roads in various parts of Qalat city with financial support of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and work on some roads was underway in other areas.

Zahid said the municipality would execute other similar projects for the development and reconstruction of Qalat city in order to provide facilities to the people.

A number of those hired said they were happy for being provided with the job as they would be able to earn a living for their families.

Naqibullah, a resident of Qalat city, told Pajhwok he had been searching for a job for the past four to five months and finally got a job with the Qalat municipality. He is paid 4300 afghanis a month.

He said the project should be extended so that thousands of destitute people like him could support their families for a long time.

Ghulam Qahir Qasid, a resident of Qalat, said similar projects should be launched to reconstruct the city and provide jobs to people.

He added currently the streets of Qalat city were being graveled and hoped that the streets would be constructed in future.

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