Agreements worth $10.6m signed with 19 NGOs

KABUL (Pajhwok): The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs on Wednesday signed agreements worth over $10.6 million with 19 local and foreign non-governmental organizations.

Addressing the agreements’ signing ceremony here, deputy minister of labor and social affairs Maulvi Mohammad Zahid said the worth of the agreements was equivalent to 786.6 million afghanis.

Under the agreements, he said, 2,735 people in 13 provinces would be imparted vocational training and would be distributed equipment. He said 350 orphans would also be provided with education and food.

He also said 14,400 child laborers would be enrolled to continue their education and their families would be offered work and nearly 2,000 poor families would be given humanitarian aid.

According to him, 52 vocational training centers exist in the entire country and from 17,000 to 20,000 people graduate from them every year.

He said efforts were underway to establish similar centers in districts and villages.

Speaking on the occasion, financial and administrative assistant at the Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs, Maulvi Din Mohammad Haqbeen, said widows and child orphans and disabled people in the country were the legacy of the decades of war. He urged aid agencies to assist them.

He asked the NGOs to cooperate with the government in areas of health, agriculture and construction in addition to orphans.

He said that the Islamic Emirate had provided facilities to all organizations and also assured cooperation to them.

Speaking on behalf the NGOs, Massoud Nekzad said they were trying to reach remote areas and provide services to those who lacked services.

He added they would fulfill properly their responsibility.

The Ministry of Labor and Social Affairs had previously signed agreements with nine NGOs worth 1.2 billion afghanis.

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