Speeches Shim
Ongoing Syrian Arab Republic Government (SARG) and Government of the Russian Federation (GoRF) airstrikes and shelling in northwestern Syria continue to kill, injure, and displace civilians; destroy health facilities; and result in the suspension of relief operations in many armed opposition group (AOG)-controlled areas of Idlib and northern Hamah governorates, the UN reports. Between April 28 and May 29, SARG and GoRF-led hostilities killed at least 300 people and damaged more than 20 hospitals and primary health care centers in northwestern Syria, according to the UN. Since May 1, airstrikes and shelling have displaced at least 310,000 people.
The Kabul River Basin flows through eastern Afghanistan and northwestern Pakistan and is crucial to the livelihoods of millions of people for domestic water supplies, agriculture, power generation, and industry. The USGS, through support from USAID, is building the capacity of the Ministry of Energy and Water (MEW) to improve management of the Kabul River Basin through increasing water-data availability and analysis.
AITF was established in 2010 to respond to the government’s need for a dedicated financing mechanism to support infrastructure development in Afghanistan. Administered by the Asian Development Bank (ADB), AITF is a multi-donor platform for bilateral, multilateral, and individual contributors to invest in infrastructure development projects that foster the country’s economic growth and improve the livelihoods of the Afghan people.
The Grain Research and Innovation (GRAIN) project enhances the capacity of Afghanistan’s Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock (MAIL) to conduct wheat-related research and identify technologies and practices that promise the greatest benefits to the wheat sector. The research focuses on productivity, profitability, and climate resilience of wheat-based systems through improved soil management, land cultivation, crop production practices, access to high-yield seed varieties and appropriate inputs, and linkages to the private seed sector and other actors along the wheat value chain.
USAID’s Catalyzing Afghan Agricultural Innovation (CAAI) activity supports Afghan-led innovation in agriculture by training a highly-skilled, modern agricultural workforce, strengthening the capacity of research and extension actors to deploy innovative solutions to the practical challenges of Afghan farmers and agribusinesses, and institutionalizing coordination among agricultural value chain stakeholders.
Afghanistan Value Chains – Livestock (AVC-L) is a market-oriented program that operates throughout the country, with regional offices in Kabul, Herat, Mazar-e-Sharif, Jalalabad, and Kandahar. AVC-L promotes sustainable agriculture-led economic growth, in line with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock's National Comprehensive Agricultural Development Priority Program. The livestock sector contributes significantly to Afghan economic growth and employment.
Afghanistan Value Chains – High Value Crops (AVC-HVC) is a market-oriented project that operates throughout the country, with regional offices in Kabul, Herat, Mazar-e-Sharif, Jalalabad, and Kandahar. AVC-HVC promotes sustainable agriculture-led economic growth, in line with the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock's National Comprehensive Agricultural Development Priority Program. Afghanistan’s high value crops sector contributes significantly to the country’s economic growth and employment.
The Government of the Republic of Mozambique (GRM) reported that the official count for Tropical Cyclone Kenneth-related deaths remained at 45 people as of May 12. In addition, the GRM reports the number of people in need of assistance from Tropical Cyclone Kenneth has increased to nearly 286,300 people as humanitarian agencies access additional populations affected by the storm. However, humanitarian access remains a challenge in areas affected by Tropical Cyclone Kenneth, with many areas remaining inaccessible by road and requiring access via air or river transport.
USAID’s Textbook II Printing and Distribution Project supports Afghanistan’s Ministry of Education (MoE) to expand access to and improve the quality of basic education for Afghanistan’s school-aged children. Through this project, USAID partners with the Government of Afghanistan (GoA) to print and distribute appropriate, MoE-approved textbooks and teachers’ guides.
During the month of April, active conflict and unexploded ordnances in Syria killed at least 324 people, including more than 70 children and one media worker, according to the Syria Network for Human Rights (SNHR). Casualties in April bring total civilian deaths to more than 1,100 people since the beginning of 2019, SNHR reports. Due to access and security constraints prohibiting data collection, SNHR cautions that the actual death toll may likely be higher.
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