"Initiated by Afghanistan’s King Zahir Shah as a way to bolster his government’s prestige, the [Helmand and Arghandab Valley Authority (HAVA)] project soon got caught up in the politics of the Cold War.
"By 1950, the U.S. was bankrolling the scheme as a way to win the hearts and minds of Afghans and bring them firmly into the West’s camp.
"Between 1950 and 1965, the massive irrigation project, situated near Kandahar, received $80 million in U.S. aid — a staggering sum for those times.
"Ironically, the project — the one Canada is now rebuilding — just didn’t work...
"... fearful of losing prestige, Washington kept pumping money into HAVA. Even after the Americans left, following the Soviet invasion of 1979, the scheme continued in fits and starts.
"In 2001, Afghanistan’s then Taliban government completed a HAVA power project that had been started by the U.S. A few months later, the Americans bombed and destroyed the plant. Now it’s our turn."
Full article: Walkom: Canada set to repeat Afghan aid flop.
I DON'T UNDERSTAND WHAT HAVA MEANS, CAN YOU GIVE AN APPROPRIATE DEFINTION TO SUIT A 13 YEAR OLD PLEASE.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I thought I had made that clear - H-elmand and A-rghandab V-alley A-uthority - I had never heard of it before either!
ReplyDelete