By IANS/WAM,
Abu Dhabi : Afghanistan is now involved in a strenuous nation-building process that requires consistency and commitment, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) has been helping the country work towards its goal, a prominent UAE daily said Thursday.
For the past eight years, the UAE Armed Forces stationed in Afghanistan has been involved in numerous activities like clearing land mines and humanitarian work such as providing aid and medical services.
“The manner in which the UAE has carried out its mission is unquestionably impressive. There are six funded medical clinics, 11 schools, 38 mosques, a general public library, a hospital, and an accommodation for displaced families. In 2009, the UAE committed more than 1.26 billion dirhams in aid, which represents 14 percent of its total foreign aid in 2009,” the Gulf News said in an editorial.
In addition to the UAE government’s provisions, the people of the UAE have contributed $22 million for food, medicine, housing and shelter, and basic relief projects.
“Yet what distinguishes the UAE’s Armed Forces in Afghanistan is not limited to humanitarian efforts. These forces have also been involved with local leaders in setting up consultative councils to bring together the people in their fight against insurgents and to build their communities. And it is this holistic humanitarian approach that lends distinction to what the UAE is seeking to accomplish in Afghanistan,” the paper said.