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Malaysia Committed To Helping Afghanistan In Reconstruction

KUALA LUMPUR, March 14 (Bernama) - Foreign Minister Datuk Seri Syed Hamid Albar said Tuesday Malaysia is committed, within its means and capability, to assisting Afghanistan in its nation building and reconstruction efforts.

Kuala Lumpur was optimistic about Afghanistan's progress and translation into a stable and strong nation, he said.

Speaking at a seminar on business opportunities in Afghanistan here, he said there were much opportunities for businesses and trades for Malaysians in the current reconstruction process.

In this regard, he said, the Malaysian government established the Afghanistan Trust Fund in October 2001 with an initial contribution of US$1 million.

Of the amount, US$550,000 had been spent to buy and send humanitarian goods to Afghanistan, he added.

Syed Hamid later presented US$370,000 from the fund to the Afghan government and RM1.3 million (US$347,000) to Mercy Malaysia to fund the Kandahar Training Centre for women and pre-school as part of the non-governmental organisation's humanitarian effort.

The money was received by Afghan Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah and Mercy Malaysia president Datuk Dr Jemilah Mahmood.

The two-day seminar, themed "Businesses Opportunities in Afghanistan", is jointly organised by the Malaysian and Afghan governments and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP).

Syed Hamid said since 2001, 140 officers from the Afghan government had attended courses in fields such as administration, finance, education, rehabilitation and security under the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme.

Currently, 43 Afghan students were enrolled in Malaysian institutions of higher learning and the Malaysian government had provided financial assistance since 2003 to ensure that the Afghan embassy here continued to operate, he added.

He said that although bilateral trade between Malaysia and Afghanistan was relatively small, total trade had picked up over the last few years.

On politics, Syed Hamid said he was happy to note that significant progress had taken place in the country since 2001, such as the organising of the presidential and parliamentary elections, reconciliation, nation building and economic development.

Syed Hamid said that the pledges to the tune of US$10.5 billion made by the international community at a recent conference on Afghanistan demonstrated the confidence and support for Afghanistan's rebuilding and reconstruction process after 25 years of war, beginning with the Soviet occupation in 1979 until the ouster of the Taliban in late 2001.

-- BERNAMA