OVERVIEW

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.

AITF investments are closely aligned with Afghanistan development priorities, including the National Infrastructure Plan and the Self-Reliance Agenda. Since 2013, USAID has provided primarily on-budget grants financing for infrastructure and technical assistance in the energy and water sectors.

ACTIVITIES

• North-South Power Transmission Enhancement (2014 – 2021): USAID provided $104 million of this $216 million infrastructure project to supply electricity to one million people in 15 previously unserved areas in rural and urban Afghanistan. Construction of the transmission line and substations will accommodate both domestically produced power and imports from Afghanistan’s northern neighbors.
• Energy Supply Investment Program (Bamyan Spur) (2016 – 2020): USAID provided $40 million of this $75 million project to build a transmission line and substation from Doshi to Bamyan that will provide low-cost power to Bamyan and other provinces in central Afghanistan.
• Kabul Managed Aquifer Recharge (2015 – 2020): USAID provided $7 million to the ADB to pilot-test managed aquifer recharge and aquifer storage and recovery technologies as one solution to addressing the rapidly diminishing domestic water supply for Kabul City. The activity is ongoing and construction of the four managed aquifer recharge sites is expected to be completed by August 2019.
• Arghandab Integrated Water Resources (2017 – 2019): USAID provided $600,000 for the Arghandab Feasibility Study to design a multi-purpose dam project with four components: 1) Raising Dahla Dam, 2) Irrigation and agriculture development, 3) Improving water supply for Kandahar City, and 4) Hydroelectric power development.
• Gas Development Master Plan (2014 – 2016): USAID contributed $800,000 for preparation of a Gas Development Master Plan for Afghanistan (2015 – 2035).

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• North-South Power Transmission Enhancement: As of December 2018, the project was 54 percent complete.
• Energy Supply Investment Program (Bamyan Spur): As of December 2018, the project was 12.5 percent complete.
• Arghandab Integrated Water Resources: In 2018, the Asian Development Bank and World Bank signed a MOU with the Afghan government to fund the $400 million reconstruction of the multi-purpose dam and associated water supply activities in Kandahar.
• Gas Development Master Plan: The Gas Development Master Plan for Afghanistan, funded by USAID, was completed in April 2016 and provides a strategy for the sustainable development of the country’s natural gas resources, national energy supply security, and protection of the environment.