SIKA-EAST Weekly Program Update: May 3 – 8, 2014

The program update for May 3 – 8, 2014, highlights various activities and achievements in the region. A significant amount of progress has been made in the construction of the Aziz Khil Village flood protection wall in Mando Zayi District of Khost Province. The wall is almost complete, with a great amount of stonemasonry work having gone into its construction. SIKA-East has been actively engaged in various activities, including training and capacity building. During the week, 20 training sessions were held, with a total of 175 men and five women being trained in 13 districts. The training sessions covered topics such as Unity Building, Negotiation Strategy, Grants Management, Infrastructure Project Implementation, and Operation and Maintenance. In addition to training, SIKA-East has also been involved in grants and engineering activities. Five grants projects, with a cumulative value of nearly $86,000, were completed during the week. These projects included one infrastructure project in Paktya Province and two in Khost, as well as two non-infrastructure projects in Maydan Wardak. Five grant awards, valued at nearly $147,000, were also made to projects in four districts. The program update also highlights the importance of stakeholder engagement and gender activities. SIKA-East conducted a refresher Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop in Stakeholder Engagement, which was attended by 32 men and 17 women from Provincial Rural Rehabilitation and Development (PRRD), Department of Women’s Affairs (DoWA), and National Area Based Development Program (NABDP), as well as SIKA-East staff. The workshop aimed to improve outreach to district women and enhance their participation in the program. In Ghazni Province, the District Governor (DG) of Khwaja Umari, along with District Social Workers (DSWs) and the district police chief, conducted four site visits to grants projects in the district. A joint IDLG and SIKA-East team also visited three tailoring centers in the district. The District Governor suggested including a transportation fee in the budgets of future projects for the women who attend vocational training courses. Overall, the SIKA-East program update for May 3 – 8, 2014, highlights the progress made in promoting stability in the eastern provinces of Afghanistan. The program's focus on training, capacity building, grants, and stakeholder engagement has resulted in significant achievements, including the completion of grants projects and the improvement of outreach to district women. The program has also been successful in engaging with local stakeholders, including government officials, service providers, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs). The meeting held in Khost City on May 6, which was attended by District Development Assembly (DDA+) members, service providers, media, representatives of NGOs, and government officials, aimed to strengthen partnerships and working relationships among service providers. The program's focus on gender activities has also been highlighted, with SIKA-East meeting with three Khost and Paktya male staff with high standing and influence in the Greater Paktya region to discuss female participation and assure them that SIKA-East will observe cultural norms. The program has also organized an introductory meeting for the proposed female participants in Zadran and Garda Serai districts.