Special Reports

BALKH (PAN): The northern Balkh province is rich in natural resources such as crude oil, cement, aluminum, stucco and sulfur, with the extraction of some mines is underway in some parts of the province.
1- The Afghan- Tajik crude oil area:
Located to the north and northeast, the Afghan- Tajik crude oil starches on 31,000 metres long from Takhar to Jawzjan province.
As many as 12 blocks of crude oil and gas have been discovered in Balkh by Terraseis--- a Canadian Company--- two years ago.

MAZAR-I-SHARIF (PAN): Security elsewhere in northern Balkh province has been improved as compared to the past, local officials said.
The officials link the improved security situation to the deployment of Afghan Local Police (ALP) to the province, extended cooperation of the people with the police, and efforts of national police force. The province has immense stability now, the officials said, adding that even small scale attacks and other security threats by rebels are encountered by the security forces efficiently.

Mazar-i-Sharif (PAN): Infrastructure in the Balkh Province has been developed to great extent during the last few years with the implementation of multiple health, education, agriculture projects, and urban development.
Balkh Governor’s Spokesperson Munir Farhad told Pajhwok Afghan News his province witnessed tremendous achievements in terms of rehabilitation and implementation of development projects during the last two years.

Mazar-i-Sharif (PAN): Education in the Balkh Province moving ahead with tandem but the shortage of professional teachers, textbooks, and absence of proper building for schools create barriers to promote the vital sector in some districts of the province.

MAZAR-I-SHARIF (PAN): Though the agriculture sector is the main source of revenue generation for more than 85 % people of the northern Balkh Province, the vital sector is in constant grip of multidimensional problems.
Almost 60% land goes uncultivated every year because of shortage of irrigation water, however, efforts are on to build water canals, setting up processing factories, explore markets for agriculture products in an apparent attempt to bolster the sector.
Agriculture: