PAKTYA PROVINCE, Afghanistan – Zormat citizens had a chance to meet their provincial and district leadership during a government outreach mission in Paktya province, Oct 26.
More than 200 Zormat residents attended a shura hosted by Paktya Gov. Juma Khan Hamdard, along with Gulab Shah, Zormat district subgovernor and several provincial line directors.
Tribal leaders sat front and center during the shura as representatives of their respective constituents.
“The government is here to listen to us present our people’s suggestions,” Mar Jan, local tribal elder said. “They are aware of our current situation in Zormat, and we continue to have a lot of talks between us and the government.”
The government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan has the responsibility to address, present and resolve the district’s concerns, Hamdard said during the shura.
Afghan government representatives are present in each district, dedicated to improving the Afghan way of life.
Public safety remains a top concern for GIRoA. To disrupt anti-Afghan forces, Afghan National Security Forces, with support from coalition forces, train, plan and conduct joint missions to provide far-reaching, effective security throughout Paktya province, the governor said.
“Zormat has seen a lot of achievements in the last two months,” Hamdard said. “More than 200 insurgents have been killed, showing a significant improvement in security through good coordination between Afghan and coalition forces.”
Zormat recently opened the first ever Afghan-run operations center, which Hamdard acclaimed as one of the biggest security achievement in Paktya.
“The Zormat Operations Center is the first OCC-D in Regional Command-East with manning provided by the Afghan National Army, Afghan National Civil Order Police, Afghan Uniform Police, National Directorate of Security and CF,” U.S. Army Lt. Col. Chuck Booze, Task Force Creek commander from Norman, Okla., said. “The ZOC is a model of ANSF cooperation and has greatly increased the response and effectiveness of the security forces in the district.”
The center provides a common operational picture across the Afghan National Security Forces, enabling agencies to respond to security and emergency situations more effectively.
Marked improvements in Zormat are the result of hard work by GIRoA in partnership with coalition forces, Hamdard said. Security efforts in the region have increased significantly in the province, according to the provincial governor.
Provincial Reconstruction Team Paktya regularly partners with Afghan government to facilitate government outreach missions throughout the province. PRT Paktya is comprised of more than 75 military members representing active duty Air Force, Army, Army Reserves and Army National Guard.