8/15/2019 Economics of Rebuilding Afghanistan

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In the name of U.S. for-eign policy and democracy-building, the U.S. govern-

ment and the United StatesAgency for InternationalDevelopment (USAID), aD.C.-based independentorganization specializing ineconomic, development,and humanitarian assistancethroughout the world, haveinvested, and will continueto invest, millions of dollarsin the reconstruction ofAfghanistan. Since fiscalyear 2002, the U.S. govern-ment and USAID haveinvested about $1.8 billionin the redevelopment ofAfghanistan, says HarryEdwards, a press officerwith USAID in

Washington, D.C.Edwards adds,

Although the French, theJapanese, and the Saudis allhave projects inAfghanistan, by and large,the U.S. government andUSAID have the largestslice of the pie.

Because they act onbehalf of U.S. foreign poli-cy initiatives and accordingto appropriation legislation,USAID is obligated to useU.S. companies or U.S.-contracted local subcon-tractors in their redevelop-ment efforts.

Perhaps the most crucialof the redevelopment initia-

tives is the Highway 1 pro-ject, a 650-mile (1,048 kilo-meters) V-shaped transna-

tional highway runningfrom Kabul to Kandahar,and Kandahar to Herat.Once finished, it will serveas the developmental life-line of Afghanistan, trans-porting people, food, healthcare supplies, and tradegoods to previously impass-able destinations.

Highway 1 is the spineof the road constructionproject, says Luke Zahner,a press officer with USAIDin Washington, D.C., it hasbeen expedited because it iscritical to the mission inAfghanistan.

New Jersey-based Louis

Berger Group, Inc. (LBG)is the primary contractorfor the Highway 1 projectand has also been taskedwith construction of morethan 220 government build-ings and schools, and morethan 30 bridges; all ofwhich are located in areasadjacent to Hwy 1. Underthe contract USAID/Afghanistan assigns infra-structure projects to LBGfor design, public contract-ing, and final acceptance.LBG tries to work closelywith local NGOs, especial-ly on non-road infrastruc-ture.

We are the general con-

tractor for USAID, we areresponsible for awarding awide array of civil and ver-tical engineering subcon-tracts, says Tom Nicastro,

Vice President of The LouisBerger Group, Inc. and thechief overseer of redevelop-ment in Afghanistan.

When Requests forProposal (RFPs) are issued,construction companies canregister to submit a propos-al for development,Nicastro explains.

International pre-quali-fication for the first portionof Phase II [the 351-milesection from Kandahar toHerat] was completed onJanuary 5, 2004. We havebegun designing the roadand pulling together finalbid packages and we will

be coming out with thenames of companies thatcan bid on the Phase II ofthe road very soon, headds.

Because Afghanistan islandlocked, the roads arethe veins that carry thelifeblood of that nationsredevelopment.

Accordingly, USAIDhas earmarked funds for thefuture construction of morethan 2,500 miles of roadsthroughout the Afghanistan.

In addition to roads con-struction, rehabilitation ofthe Salang Tunnel is a cru-cial step in restoring nor-malcy and efficiency to

daily life in Afghanistan.Created to bisect the enor-mous Hindu Kush moun-tain range, the SalangTunnel directly links north-

ern and southernAfghanistan. When func-tional, a trip from northernAfghanistan to Kabul mighttake 10 hours, as comparedto 72 hours for the sametrip when the tunnel is notfunctioning.

To ensure continuedoperation for the 8,000 peo-ple and 1,000 cars that usethe tunnel on a daily basis,USAID is providing $1.6million for snow removal,emergency repairs, and traf-fic control management.

Ventilation systemshave failed and people havedied from carbon monoxide

poisoning; some havefrozen to death after thetunnel became obstructedwhile they were inside,says Edwards.

By 2005, USAID plansto rehabilitate or recon-struct more than 1,100schools in Afghanistan.This is a project that isabsolutely necessary saysEdwards, the current liter-acy rate in Afghanistan is13 percent.

Moreover, USAID hascommitted funds to thecompletion of more than6,000 water-related con-struction projects includingthe creation of wells, reser-voirs, irrigation canals, anddams.

According to Edwards,Afghanistan used to havea very intricate system ofchanneling and redistribut-ing water from the moun-

tains to irrigate the coun-trys crops. But 20 years ofblowing things up, bomb-ing, and mining has causedit [Afghanistan] to be a lit-

tle less efficient than it usedto be.

The vital water projectsinclude Bethesda, Md.-based, DevelopmentAlternatives International(DAI), which has beengranted $6 million for irri-gation rehabilitation, andWashington, D.C.-basedChemonics, which has beengranted $2 million for agri-culture rehabilitation.

Among the non-profithumanitarian efforts are a$1 million grant fromMercy Corps, a Christianvolunteer ministry program,which will focus on small-

scale water sanitation, andthe International RescueCommittee (IRC), a refugeeresettlement and emergencyrelief advocacy group,which has a $616,000 con-tract to improve irrigationand water sanitation struc-tures.

Although most of theprojects under USAIDsupervision have a 2 to 3-year lifespan, according toZahner, The end of con-tract does not mean the endof the commitment. Itmeans that the contractmust be extended to includemore projects or furtherobligations.

The project end datesare not set in stone. Theyare target dates. The natureof USAID contracts allowsthem to be extended headds.

Tom Nicastro, having

just returned from a USAIDaward ceremony in whichLBG was presented with anaward for completing thefirst phase of their contract

two weeks ahead of sched-ule, adds, Contract exten-sion depends on clientfunding and client happi-ness. And so far, the client,[the US government] hasbeen happy. We got a letterfrom President Bush sayinghow happy he is with theroad.

However, Nicastro isquick to point out that theletter received wasaddressed to LBG in addi-tion to all of the subcon-tractors, and the people andgovernment of Afghanistan.

It is clear that there is noshortage of work or funding

in Afghanistan. One exam-ple is the Kabul-Kandahar-Herat highway and relatedprojects, which were initial-ly bid at $250 million.USAID has delivered $190million of that sum, and theproject has not yet reachedits midpoint.

We envisage a long-term commitment toAfghanistans redevelop-ment, says Zahner.

USAID is optimisticabout the continued role ofU.S. construction compa-nies in rebuildingAfghanistan. Edwardssays, we expect to beworking [in Afghanistan]for some time to come,while Zahner adds,President Bush has madeit quite clear that the rede-velopment of Afghanistanwill be a long-term pro-

ject.

JEFF ROBERTS Special to The Baltimore Construction News

Much like Iraq, Afghanistan is a goldmine for construction companies

The Baltimore Construction News MARCH 2004 PAGE 11

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size of the redevelopment. In another jurisdiction, we were granted a waiverfrom groundwater recharge because the

county agreed that it would be impracticalthere. We satisfied the review agency bydemonstrating that the measures we wereable to incorporate in our design improvedthe water quality management of the sitesubstantially.

While there are clearly numerousstormwater management options to con-sider for any redevelopment project, sever-al have frequently been effective. The useof passive design features such as grassswales or other organic filters often canhelp meet water quality requirements inex-pensively without using up a great deal ofland. In addition, there are several credits

listed in Chapter 5 of the MDE manualthat may be applicable to a redevelopmentproject. Thoughtful designers work toincorporate as many of these features aspossible in their overall stormwater man-agement design. Qualifying for some ofthese credits may not eliminate the need

for waivers or other design measures, butit will help to cast your overall projectdesign in the most positive light. If thereviewing agency sees that your develop-ment team is making an overall effort toimprove existing stormwater conditions asmuch as possible, they will likely workwith the team to see the project to fruition.When that can be accomplished expedi-tiously and within budget, we all succeed.

Andrew Ferretti is Manager ofMaryland Operations for BL CompaniesBaltimore, Maryland office. He can bereached at aferretti@blcompanies.com.

StormwaterContinued from page 6