News (Consolidated) - UNSOM

HERAT - Abdul Karim (not his real name) is a nine-year-old Afghan child. He waits under the street traffic light in downtown Herat for the cars to come and cleans their windscreens in the hope of gleaning some money. Abdul is the only breadwinner for his three-member family. He lost his drug…

4 January 2011 - The Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) opened its office in the capital Kabul on 2 January. The OIC is the second largest worldwide inter-governmental organization after the United Nations, with 57 member states spread over four continents: 55 OIC members are also member…

KABUL - The first pictorial guide to the flora of Afghanistan co-authored in English and Dari by a Kabul born scientist has been made available for free to thousands of Afghan students as the United Nations wrapped up its International Year of Biodiversity. The publication of the 870-page Field…

HERAT - A three-day photo exhibit depicting women’s role in politics, society and sport opened Thursday in the western province of Herat. “The exhibition depicts the ways of women’s lives in Afghanistan, which is peerless,” said Wali Shah Bahra, Director of Information and Culture in Herat, calling…

NANGARHAR - An Afghan non-governmental organization has provided multimedia training to nearly 50 staff of state-owned media and provincial government, as part of an effort to strengthen journalism in the country and support freedom of expression. “The overall objective of the training was to…

13 January 2011 - A co-ed high school focused on management and the economy officially opened this week in the capital of the southern province Helmand. “Education is the best tool to achieve sustainable peace and development, desperately needed for Helmand province and the whole country,” said…

KABUL - The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) today welcomed a donation of $196.6 million from Japan, the largest-ever single contribution to the agency, which will use it to provide essential food and nutritional assistance to millions of needy people in 20 countries in Africa and Asia. The…

BAMYAN - The challenges and opportunities for young leaders in Afghanistan was among the main discussion topics at a political outreach workshop attended this week by 40 civil society representatives in the central region of Bamyan. “Participants noted the atmosphere of democracy slowly evolving in…

18 January 2011 - New roads built in northern Afghanistan are benefiting almost 700,000 people by increasing access to basic services, providing jobs and promoting peace and stability. The Road Access Improvement Project in the provinces of Samangan and Sar-e-Pul is being funded by the Swedish…

KANDAHAR - Kandahar’s rise in cricket continues as the team beat out players from 21 other provinces to win the national championships in Nangarhar for a second year in a row. Each team played two-day matches against three opposing teams. Representing the Bost zone, Kandahar secured two wins and…

KABUL - Taliban insurgents and other armed groups as well as criminal gangs in Afghanistan have been deliberately targeting demining NGOs, particularly in the volatile southern provinces, says the Afghanistan NGO Safety Office (ANSO). At least 10 deminers were killed, 23 injured and 12 abducted in…

KABUL - Soaring opium prices may induce more farmers to grow opium, warned the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in its full 2010 Afghanistan Opium Survey released today. The high prices are based on speculation arising from an opium blight that halved production in 2010 and from…