50 new factories added to Kandahar industrial park

KANDAHAR (Pajhwok): The number of factories has increased to 300 in the industrial park of southern Kandahar province, officials said on Tuesday.

Mufti Ali Mohammad, head of the industrial park in Kandahar city, told Pajhwok Afghan News: “The electricity supply to the industrial park has been increase compared to the past and as a result previously non-functional factories have also resumed productions.”

He said last year the number of operational factories was 250 which reached to 300 this year

“These factories include cotton processing, food production, making shoes and some other products”, Mufti said.

He said the number of remaining non-functional factories was unclear, but officials were trying to encourage the investors to reactivate their  factories to generate jobs as well, Mufti added.

Currently about 12,000 workers work in these factories, if the remaining nonfunctional factories resume operation, they will generate thousands of more employment opportunities.

Industrialists are happy about the solution to some extent of the electricity problem, calling it a great service to them.

Abdul Baqi, director of a thrasher production factory, said their biggest problem had been the lack of electricity which had been mostly solved.

He said: “Now we have electricity most of the time (18-20 hour per 24 hours), our affairs mostly depend on electricity, if it is cut off, our factory stops production”.

Other factory owners said electricity was basic need for their work and if the power supply remained as it was now, they would be able to increase their production.

Noor Ahmad, owner of a plastic items production factory, said: “With the increase in power supply, the number of factories has also increased, we had just ten hours electricity in the past, now we have twenty hours of power, in such condition both jobs generation for laborers and production level increase”.

Oficials of the provincial Chamber of Commerce and Industries said industries could eliminate unemployment and played key role in economic growth of the country.

Sayed Sarwar Amani, head of the chamber, told Pajhwok  the morale of investors had increased with the increase in electricity supply.

“If the imported power once reaches to Kandahar, I hope the electricity shortage issue will be solved completely.”

He added: “The electricity shortage issue has been extensively resolved, something they did not expect and work on extending  the imported power is also in progress, once connected to Kandahar, we would not have any power shortage problem”.

After long years, the electricity has reached its best condition and it is suspended only for one or two hours in 24 hours.

aw/ma