RAMP UP North Monthly Report, January 2014

The program aims to increase the capacity of the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) municipal officials, improve the delivery of municipal services to citizens, and increase municipal capacity to enable, support, and sustain economic growth. RAMP UP North has made significant progress in implementing its objectives. In January 2014, ribbon cutting ceremonies were held in Taloqan, Mazar-e-Sharif, and Pul-e-Khumri for various infrastructure projects, including the R4 Children's Park Construction project, the R3 Bukhdi Park Reconstruction District 8 (D8) project, and the "I" Park Construction District 6 (D6) project. The inauguration ceremonies for the Aybak, Sheberghan, Khulm, Maymana, Pul-e-Khumri, and Andkhoy Citizen Service Centers (CSCs) were also held, with the USAID Senior Civilian Representative for Regional Command (RC) North and the USAID/RAMP UP North Contracting Officer Representative (COR) in attendance. Safayi registration survey activities have been completed in Andkhoy, Aqcha, Aybak, Faizabad, Khulm, Pul-e-Khumri, Sar-e-Pul, Sheberghan, Maymana, Taloqan, and Mazar-e-Sharif. Across the remaining municipalities, a further 2,856 properties were surveyed, bringing the total properties surveyed across all municipalities to 218,832 by the end of January. The total distribution of business licenses this year (1393) to date is 775. The RAMP UP North Geographical Information System (GIS) team has successfully linked GIS parcel data to the Integrated Financial Management System (IFMS) database, enabling municipalities to view attribute data such as ownership, property type, and location, and tax status on GIS parcel maps. In Kunduz, Pul-e-Khumri, and Maymana, the respective mayors and governors' offices have approved the draft budgets, with the Kunduz budget submitted to the General Directorate of Municipal Affairs (GDMA) and the Maymana budget to be sent to the Independent Directorate of Local Governance (IDLG) for further processing soon. Regional workshops and training continued in January 2014, with the second Citizen Service Center (CSC) Functional Services Training Regional Workshop held in Mazar-e-Sharif for Khulm, Andkhoy, Maymana, and Pul-e-Khumri. A Project Management regional training was also held for Maymana, Sar-e-Pul, Sheberghan, Aqcha, Mazar-e-Sharif, Khulm, Aybak, Kunduz, Taloqan, Pul-e-Khumri, and Faizabad, focusing on the use of Microsoft Project and AutoCAD. Three gender mainstreaming workshops took place in the district municipalities of Aqcha, Andkhoy, and Khulm, addressing gender-related issues and contextualizing Afghan laws and regulations, culture, and society. The RAMP UP North program has enhanced municipal officials' capacity, enabling them to report their achievements, challenges, and suggestions to citizens. The program's efforts have been recognized by municipal officials, who appreciate the support provided by USAID/RAMP UP North. The program's progress and achievements demonstrate its commitment to creating effective, responsive, democratic, transparent, and accountable municipal governance in the region.