PATROL BASE JAMIL, Helmand province, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan - The Government of Afghanistan is working with Marines of Company A, 1st Battalion, 5th Marines, to boost the economy and give the people of Sangin work through projects in the area. The projects are designed to clean up parts of Sangin and address the needs brought by tribal elders. This makes it imperative for civil affairs Marines to interact with the elders firsthand and properly evaluate the scope of suggested projects.
“You have to start from somewhere. After all the work that (3rd Battalion, 5th Marines) did, people are a lot more willing to come forward and talk to us,” said Sgt. J. D. Hodges, the 4th Civil Affairs Group representative for Co. A, 1/5. ”It is good to know who does not have the interest of the community first.”
A project to clean up and dig storm sewers for a road heavily used by local commuters going to and from the Sangin Bazaar was selected and announced earlier in the week. The project entailed contractors placing bids for truck leases and then showing up with 10 workers a piece. The road was divided into even sections and worked on during set hours until completion. The set hours allowed the Afghan Local Police and Afghan National Security Forces to provide security for the workers ensuring that the work will not be hindered.
The sectioning off of the road, allowed the Marines to evaluate the quality of the work and the supervisor’s ability to manage the small scale project. District officials will assess the contractors work and select whether or not they will use them for future projects. To be assigned to future projects the contractors had to participate in this project.
Since the funds for these projects are dispersed by GIRoA through the Marines, the Marines chose to set up a cash-for-work program to pay the workers and contractors individually for this project. This allows the money to be split up to reduce the enemy threat to any one individual since the Marines cannot provide around the clock security for each contractor.
The project comes at the end of the poppy harvest when laborers are being laid off and looking for work to provide for their families. A large group of unemployed young men are fertile recruiting grounds for any insurgency. .
“People out here are desperate to feed their families and they will do anything it takes to put food on the table,” said Capt. Michael J. Donaldson, the commanding officer of Alpha Company, 1/5. “This is awesome because we can take 50-60 Taliban age males out of the fight by giving them honest work to do.”
The project will also lead to more projects and enable workers to have work over the summer and be able to work consistently and simultaneously improve their community.
“This project will be a success if just one contractor shows up with 10 men,” said Hodges, 28, from Blair, S.C.
The more contractors who show up the better and will allow for more workers to be employed and provide a competitive market said Donaldson because it is important to the success of Afghanistan. It also will encourage the supervisors and laborers to work hard and compete with each other to get the project done faster and better.
“The cash-for-work program and security being provided primarily by ANSF is important because it is bringing together all the functioning elements of a working, successful society,” said Donaldson. “If you look at the lines of operation, developing security, economy and governance, they are all in there. Every single one of those can be found in the cash-for-work program.”
The Marines understand that the elders who create the projects and the laborers who do the work are ultimately the ones who will determine the success of the test project and ultimate success in Sangin, not the Marines or GIRoA.
| Date Taken: |
05.06.2011 |
| Date Posted: |
05.15.2011 13:10 |
| Story ID: |
70420 |
| Location: |
PATROL BASE JAMIL, HELMAND PROVINCE, ISLAMIC REPUBLIC OF, AF |
| Web Views: |
1,120 |
| Downloads: |
2 |
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This work, Alpha Company 1/5 Project Improves Sangin Economy, by Sgt Benjamin Crilly, identified by DVIDS, must comply with the restrictions shown on https://www.dvidshub.net/about/copyright.
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