Editorial: When will Kabul's streets be paved?

Kabul is expanding day by day to accommodate a growing population. Townships have grown up in various parts of the city. People have acquired plots of land from Kabul municipality and the private sector and have built concrete or adobe homes. A township should at least have a drainage system, water supply, electricity and paved roads, yet the Kart-e Naw township located in the east of the city still lacks a proper drainage system, paved streets, recreational parks, a hospital and adequate parking lots even though it was built 40 years ago. No one has attended to ensuring there is greenery in the area. Further to the east, there is a settlement called Arzan Qimat, built in the Eighties. Although the municipality provided broad roads everywhere in this township at the time, it still lacks drainage, a water supply system and electricity. As the roads are not yet gravelled, they get muddy whenever it rains. Kabul municipality should create long-term plans for the city, and encourage donor institutions and the national government to fund the cost of asphalting the roads. A city’s beauty depends on its green areas, so substantial steps need to be taken, led by the municipality, to make this ancient city greener, as the season for planting saplings is just around the corner.