To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made by provincial reconstruction teams in Afghanistan in building (a) police stations, (b) roads, (c) bridges and (d) women’s centres. (98012)

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) estimate that the total amount of funding committed by Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) in Afghanistan, is $80,190,000 since 2004. They estimate that 61 per cent. of this expenditure has been spent, with the remaining planned, ongoing or identified. ISAF collect this information from reports from the 24 PRTs across the country, and warn that these data may not be completely accurate.

The PRTs report to ISAF based on the pillars of the Afghanistan National Development Strategy: Agriculture, Education, Good Governance, Health, Infrastructure and Natural Resources, Private Sector Development, Security, and Social Protection. ISAF are able to provide financial expenditure data by pillar but not able to provide information on specific areas. For example (i) the expenditure since 2004 on Infrastructure and Natural Resources is estimated as a total of US $31,332,000 which will include roads and bridges; (ii) expenditure on Security, which will include building and refurbishments of police stations is estimated to be US $4,443,000; (iii) expenditure on social protection, which will include Women’s Centres, is estimated to be US $7,059,000.

Further detailed information on PRT progress in these areas is not available at this time.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what the total value of funds expended by provincial reconstruction teams in Afghanistan on development and reconstruction projects was in each quarter since 2004. (98014)

The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) estimates that the total amount of funding committed by Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRTs) in Afghanistan is $80,190,000 since 2004. They estimate that 61 per cent. of this funding has been spent, with the remaining planned, ongoing or identified. ISAF collect this information from reports from the 24 PRTs across the country, and warn that these data may not be completely accurate.

ISAF are not currently able to break down this expenditure by quarter.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much has been allocated by the Department to (a) the Asian Development Bank and (b) USAID for reconstruction projects in Afghanistan. (98015)

DFID has given the Asian Development Bank (ADB) £300,000 for a 12 month Rural Land Administration project to pilot land ownership initiatives in two provinces—Herat and Takhar. The project started in June 2006. DFID also makes an annual core contribution of £28.5 million to the ADB, which in turn allocates 9 per cent. of its financing to Afghanistan. This implies we allocate £2.6 million a year to Afghanistan through our central financing of the ADB.

DFID has not allocated any money to USAID for projects in Afghanistan.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much has been allocated by his Department (a) directly and (b) indirectly to the funding of road reconstruction projects in Afghanistan. (98017)

DFID gave the National Rural Access Programme (NRAP) £18 million in 2005-06 to help provide access to infrastructure. This will help construct 185 km of road and rehabilitate 3,500 km of existing roads. While this work is still ongoing, we do not have immediate plans for additional allocations. In addition to this funding DFID has also allocated £8.5 million to NRAP to focus specifically on Helmand. This financing has been made available through DFID’s Helmand Agricultural and Rural Development Programme and will finance 49 km of road construction to begin in March 2007. DFID also provides core funding to multilateral development banks such as the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank, who have together spent $480 million on roads around the country.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made on the Kandahar to Herat highway in Afghanistan; what the estimated completion date is; and if he will make a statement. (98018)

Construction work for the Kandahar to Herat highway is 80 per cent. complete. The remaining section has been put on hold due to security concerns.

USAID, Saudi Arabia and Japan funded the construction of this road, dividing the construction into their own segments. Construction work started in 2003. USAID provided $163 million for a 326 km section form Herat to Dilaram which is now complete. Saudi Arabia has committed $51 million for a 116 km section from Dilaram to Garishk. Japan has provided $76 million for a 114 km section from Garishk to Kandahar. There are concerns over security in this area and for the time being, construction work has been put on hold until the situation improves.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what discussions he has had with USAID officials on the introduction of a toll system on the Kabul to Kandahar highway. (98019)

DFID staff have not had any discussions with USAID officials over the tolls in place on the Kabul to Kandahar highway. Consultants working for DFID in the Ministry of Finance have had discussions with the US military on the scheme for security purposes. One outcome of these discussions was that the US military donated materials for a public awareness campaign for the toll scheme.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his Department’s policy is on the implementation of road taxes as a means of developing the Afghan economy. (98020)

Government revenues in Afghanistan are among the lowest in the world. Last year revenues totalled just $500 million. This represents under $20 per head or 5.5 per cent. of GDP, less than half the average for other low income countries. The need to provide essential services, coupled with the massive cost of rebuilding Afghanistan after more than two decades of conflict, makes raising domestic revenues one of the highest priorities of the Government of Afghanistan. DFID supports the Government’s revenue raising efforts through a three-year £6.5 million technical assistance project in the tax department. DFID does not have a specific policy on road taxes but supports the Government’s attempts to diversify revenue sources and increase collection rates.

The introduction of road tolls is one of a number of new initiatives that the Government have put in place in recent years to meet this challenge. The road toll scheme is only small at present (it is estimated to raise around $7 million in the current fiscal year), but it does have the potential to make a more sizable contribution over time. Other, more significant reforms that are making immediate contributions to meet this challenge include the establishment of a large taxpayers office, improvements in income tax collection and customs tariff rationalisation.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his Department’s policy is on the treatment of Afghan construction workers on projects funded or part-funded by the UK. (98022)

DFID expects that all workers will be treated within the bounds of Afghanistan constitutional human rights principles and national legislation. Afghanistan’s Labour Law, 1987, provides for a 40 hour work week, and equal employment opportunities for women. Child labour is officially prohibited in Afghanistan. Articles 48 and 49 of the constitution outline the right to work, to regulated hours, and to paid holidays. Afghan workers are free to join trade unions.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will estimate the average salary in (a) Afghanistan and (b) Kabul; and what estimate he has made of the proportion of earnings the potential monthly road toll represents for users of the Kabul to Kandahar highway. (98023)

The average annual income in Afghanistan is approximately $300 but most people do not receive formal salaries. The income of those on salaries is and specifically those using the Kabul to Kandahar highway is likely to be much higher. The average pay for a civil servant in Kabul is around $100 a month and the average in the private sector and in aid agencies is significantly higher. For instance average pay for a junior manager in the private sector or local NGO is around $400 a month, or double that in an international NGO.

The tolls for the use of the four roads in the scheme are in the following table:

From these rates the monthly fee for using the toll roads would be approximately 1 per cent. the income of a junior manager in a local firm. However, it should be pointed out that the vast majority of users of these roads are taxis, high income users or commercial vehicles. For these users the toll would be spread amongst many people or a lesser share of personal income.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what percentage of the money collected in toll payments for the use of the Kabul to Kandahar highway will go to (a) road maintenance, (b) the USA and (c) other donor states. (98024)

The money raised from the road toll scheme is not earmarked for any specific purposes but rather contributes to the Government of Afghanistan’s core budget spending. In last year’s budget, spending on development was 63 per cent. of total expenditures with security and governance at 30 per cent. and 7 per cent. respectively. Within development spending the largest areas of expenditure were agriculture and rural development at 21 per cent. and infrastructure and natural resources at 14 per cent.

None of the money raised will go directly to the USA or other donor states. However, the scheme does rely on the use of stickers which are purchased from a German firm. Two years supply of anti-counterfeit stickers cost $450,000, around 2.5 per cent. of the scheme’s expected returns over the same period. The German firm won the contract after a tendering process consistent with the Government of Afghanistan Procurement Law.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development if he will provide a breakdown of how the $30 million generated in toll payments per annum for the use of the Kabul to Kandahar highway has been allocated in Afghanistan. (98025)

In the first four months of operation the road toll scheme has raised a total of $1.4 million. Current estimates are that this will reach $6.9 million for the 2006-07 budget year. Road users purchase a sticker that covers the use of four major roads around Kabul. This makes it difficult to calculate the precise share of the total attributable to the use of the Kabul—Kandahar road. Roughly 15 per cent. of the sales come from vendors working on that route but there also are likely to be users purchasing stickers in central Kabul and other locations.

The money raised from the road toll scheme is not earmarked for any specific purposes but rather contributes to the Government of Afghanistan’s core budget spending. In last year’s budget, spending on development was 63 per cent. of total expenditures with security and governance at 30 per cent. and 7 per cent. respectively. Within development spending the largest areas of expenditure were agriculture and rural development at 21 per cent. and infrastructure and natural resources at 14 per cent.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development whether UK funds will be spent on the construction of the American University of Afghanistan. (98026)

The UK has not provided any funds for the construction of the American University of Afghanistan.

The Government of Afghanistan has donated land worth an estimated $28 million. The US Government has contributed $17.7 million and private sector organisations, such as the Bayat Foundation have pledged a further $6 million. DFID has not provided resources. DFID’s programme in Afghanistan is instead targeted on three areas: building effective state institutions; improving economic management and improving the livelihoods of rural people.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what his Department’s policy is on the tender process for contracts for Afghan reconstruction projects. (98027)

DFID tenders a limited number of reconstruction projects in Afghanistan directly, preferring to provide direct support to the Government of Afghanistan, thereby strengthening its own systems. Where a tender is undertaken by the Government of Afghanistan, we expect the Government to follow Afghanistan’s Procurement Law, 2005. DFID-Afghanistan’s support to the Ministry of Finance Budget Department includes technical advice for improving compliance in Afghan government expenditure.

Where DFID does directly procure goods and services, and contracts are expected to cost more than £100,000, these must be issued by using the contract processes set out in Her Majesty’s Government’s public procurement regulations (derived from the European Union (EU) Procurement Directives). The purpose of the Directives is to open public procurement markets to international competition thereby increasing opportunities for all suppliers and service-providers. This reinforces HMG policy on value for money through fair, open and transparent competition.

For contracts below £100,000 procurement must represent value for money which is usually best achieved through competition. However, where competition for lower value contracting is likely to involve disproportionate cost, suppliers may be ‘single sourced’, with contracts awarded without competition.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development when the Kabul to Kandahar toll road payment system began; and how much revenue has been collected since inception. (98028)

The Government of Afghanistan introduced a road toll scheme on four major highways in July this year. In the first four months of operation the road toll scheme has raised a total of $1.4 million. Current estimates are that this will reach $6.9million for the 2006-07 budget year. Road users purchase a sticker that covers the use of four major roads around Kabul. This makes it difficult: to calculate the precise share of the total attributable to the use of the Kabul—Kandahar road. Roughly 15 per cent. of the sales come from vendors working on that route but there also are likely to be users purchasing stickers in central Kabul and other locations. The money raised from the road toll scheme is not earmarked for any specific purposes but rather contributes to the Government of Afghanistan’s core budget spending.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what estimate has been made of the number of brothels operating in Kabul; and what work has been carried out by his Department to curtail the growth of the sex trade in Afghanistan. (98029)

DFID has not made any assessment of the number of brothels operating in Kabul, nor has it carried out any work specifically to curtail the growth of the sex trade in Afghanistan.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what progress has been made in the establishment of a sustainable data collection mechanism on alternative livelihoods activities and investments in Afghanistan in accordance with United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime recommendations; and what the role of the UK is in the project. (98176)

The database was first established in 2005 by United Nations Office of Drugs and Crime (UNODC). DFID worked closely with UNODC on the design phase. Upon release of the July 2005 report, DFID asked UNODC to embed the database in the Ministry of Counter Narcotics (MCN), as part of its co-ordinating and monitoring role. The British embassy drugs team provided guidance on the required information fields and DFID worked closely with UNODC and MCN on the design of the questionnaire proforma. This is distributed quarterly by MCN to all donors, including DFID, to collect data on alternative livelihoods programmes for the database.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development (1) what his assessment is of the principal factors leading to the reduction of opium poppy cultivation in (a) Balkh and (b) Farah provinces in Afghanistan in 2006; (98177)

I have been asked to reply.

We assess that the principal factors leading to the increases in cultivation in Uruzgan, Badakshan and Day Kundi are insecurity, poor governance and lack of development. Although cultivation has also risen in Nangarhar, it remains at negligible levels across much of the province for the second consecutive year. This is a precedent in Afghanistan. Where cultivation has increased in Nangarhar it has been largely limited to the more remote areas where the shift to legal livelihoods is constrained by insecurity and limited access to land, water and markets. In Balkh, better security, governance and an effective eradication campaign all contributed to a reduction in cultivation. In Farah we assess that drought had an impact on cultivation levels.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how many of his Department’s staff were originally dispatched to Helmand Province when British forces were deployed there; and how many staff are stationed in (a) Helmand Province and (b) Kandahar Province. (98180)

As part of the original UK Joint Plan for Helmand, DFID deployed one development adviser to work alongside other UK Government Departments in Helmand.

Currently there is one DFID staff member working in the provincial reconstruction team, providing cover for the PCRU quick impact project manager. We anticipate redeploying the development adviser to Helmand when he returns from leave later this week, subject to appropriate security arrangements.

Currently, there are no DFID staff deployed in Kandahar Province.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what work his Department has carried out in Helmand Province since British troops were deployed there; and what the outcomes from this work have been. (98181)

In Helmand, DFID is funding £30 million Helmand Agriculture and Rural Development Programme. This programme aims to increase economic opportunities for the rural poor of Helmand by supporting the Government of Afghanistan in the implementation of existing successful National Programmes in Helmand. Preliminary tasks have been undertaken: i.e. sites for road and well building have been identified; engineering surveys conducted; and the Government procurement process started. This programme will construct 200 wells in and around Lashkar Gah city by end March 2007, and 49 km of road will be under construction by then. Should the security situation allow, we also expect to build a further 490 wells in four districts in central Helmand by end March 2007. In the longer term, these programmes will provide improved water and sanitation, essential small-scale rural infrastructure, greater access to small loans, improved roads and access to markets and agricultural inputs and training to the people of Helmand.

Through the £3 million DFID-funded Research into Alternative Livelihoods Fund (RALF), the Restorative Agriculture and Rural Economy Research Project, implemented by Mercy Corps, in Helmand, is working on the feasibility of exporting grapes, tomatoes, mushrooms, eggplants and okra, and has made strong contacts with raisin importers (organic and fair-trade). The programme is evaluating at least 10 different small-scale agri-processing industries, and producing case studies of enterprises that prove to have value added, for example tomato paste.

DFID has committed £4 million to the UK Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP) funding allocation of £6.5 million for the delivery of quick impact projects (QIPS) in Helmand to get short-term development results and help build a platform for longer-term activities. From the total allocation, half has been committed and all will be spent by March 2007. To date, nearly 50 such projects have been funded and implemented. These funds have provided humanitarian assistance to victims of the drought, constructed permanent vehicle checkpoints to improve security, improved security around the shrine in Gereshk, reinforced the river bank walls and provided flood defences for the Bowlan bridge. A full list of UK funded QIPs under the four broad sub-headings (Reconstruction and Development, Security, Governance and Counter Narcotics) is as follows as supporting documentation.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what work has been carried out by non-governmental organisations in Helmand province in 2006; and how many are operating in Helmand province. (98182)

There is no central database of all work carried out by local and international NGOs in Helmand. We do also not know for certain how many NGOs are operating in Helmand.

In 2006 DFID has provided support through Quick Impact Project (QIPs) to HAFO (Helping Afghan Farmers Organisation) and WADAN (Welfare and Development of Afghans Network). The following table as supporting documentation outlines the work that HAFO and WADAN have, or are in the process of undertaking in Helmand.

The £3 million DFID-funded research into Alternative Livelihoods Fund (RALF), the Restorative Agriculture and Rural Economy Research Project, implemented by Mercy Corps., is working in Helmand on the feasibility of exporting grapes, tomatoes, mushrooms, eggplants and okra, and has made strong contacts with raisin importers (organic and fair-trade).

Through the Government of Afghanistan’s National Programmes which we support, the Government provide additional support to NGOs as facilitating partners, including BRAC and Mercy Corps.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development what assessment he has made of the correlation between input of alternative livelihoods funding to the priority provinces identified in the Afghan Government’s alternative livelihoods implementation plan and the production of opium in those provinces. (98189)

The UK has been helping the Government of Afghanistan prepare an alternative livelihoods plan to help deliver the updated National Drug Control Strategy. The plan has seven work areas, focussing on particular provinces with a high level of opium production as well as those with a high level of vulnerability to opium poppy cultivation. The plan has been recently endorsed by the Minister for Counter Narcotics and the Cabinet Sub-Committee.

There is currently no effective system in place for measuring the impact of alternative livelihood programmes on poppy cultivation in the priority provinces. DFID is helping the Afghan Government address this problem by undertaking a repeat survey in three of the priority provinces, starting in 2007. The results will be known after the first survey is undertaken in March 2007.

However we do know from the 2006 UNODC opium survey, that alternative livelihoods alone are not enough. Where there is access to governance, security and development, reductions in cultivation achieved last year have been sustained and in some cases fallen.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development how much was paid in cash for development purposes in the Helmand province in 2006; and who the recipients were. (98484)

DFID has committed £4 million this financial year to the UK Global Conflict Prevention Pool (GCPP) funding allocation of £6.5 million for the delivery of Quick Impact Projects (QIPS) in Helmand. The purpose of QIPs is to get short-term development results and help build a platform for longer-term activities. The total paid out in cash to date is US$ 2,872,068 (£1.6 million) out of US$ 4,946,302 (£2.7 million) committed so far.

These funds have provided humanitarian assistance to victims of the drought, constructed permanent vehicle checkpoints to improve security, improved security around the shrine in Gereshk, reinforced the river bank walls and provided flood defences for the Bowlan Bridge. A full list of UK funded QIPs under the four broad sub-headings (Reconstruction and Development, Security, Governance, and Counter Narcotics) is attached as supporting documentation, showing recipient organisations.