Announcement of Six Million Dollars IDA Credit for Education in Afghanistan on December 27, 1976

•World Bank 1818 H Street, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20433, U.S.A. • Telephone: (202) 393-6360 IDA NEWS RELEASE NO. 77/22 December 27. 1976 $6 MILLION IDA CREDIT FOR EDUCATION IN AFGHANISTAN The International Development Association (IDA), the World Bank's afflllate, has approved a $6 mf111on credft for an education project fn Afghan·t st' an. The project will help meet Afghanlstan•s need for a more practfcal education In agriculture and will increase the number of extension workers significantly. Agriculture occupies two-thirds of Afghanistan's 16.7 mflllon • 'people and accounts for one-half of the nation's Gross Domestic Product • The Afghan Government has placed hfgh priority on a program of rural development, especially to assist small farm families. Under the project, four new agricultural secondary schools will be opened and three existing ones expanded. These schools, all In rural areas, will add over 5,000 places to some 1,000 places now available. A more practical and relevant curriculum for agricultural education wt 11 be introduced and practical field train In~"·' 11 be provided. Plans will also be drawn for a national educational materials and services center, a national teacher training complex and five regional teachers' trafnfng lnstftutes. The project Is expected to be completed by 1980 at a cost of $ 1 1• 48 mt 111 on . The IOA credit to Afghanistan will be for a 50-year term including 10 years of grace. It will be Interest-free but will carry a service charge of 3/4 of 1 percent per annum to cover IDA's administrative ~ costs. NOTE: Money figures are expressed fn US dollar equivalents.  • Form No. 1121 (9-75) T E CHNI CAL DAT A PROJECT: Second Education COUNTRY: Afghanfstan TOTAL COST: $11. 48 mi 111 on I DA FINANCING: $6 million. on standard IDA terms. OTHER FINANCING: Government of Afghanlstan, $5.48 million IMPLEMENTING ORGANIZATION: MJntstry of Education Kabul, Afghanistan PROJECT DESCRIPTION: The project consists of: construction, furnishing, and • equtppfng of four new agricultural secondary schools; extensfons, furnishing and equfppfng of three existing agricultural secondary schools;, pre~investment designs for: a national educational materials and services center. a national teacher training complex, and ffve regional teachers training Institutes; and related technical assistance. PROCUREMENT: Civil works contracts for school structures would be awarded on the basis of local competitive bidding acceptable to IDA. Furniture and equipment contracts would be awarded on the basis of lnternatfonal competitive bidding in accordance with IDA guidelines. Items would be grouped to permit bulk procurement under International competttlve bidding except for Items whfch can. only be grouped ln small packages (under SS0,000), Items which must be compatible wfth other equipment procured under international competitive blddlnq and Items of such speciallzed nature that such procedures would not be practicable. These latter items would be procured under normal qovernment procurement procedures after obtaining price quotations from at least three manufacturers or suppliers and would not exceed an aggregate total of Sl.5 mJlllon or about 44 percent of total furnlture and equipment cost. Local manufacturers of equipment partlclpatlng ln lnternatlonal competitive bidding would be al lowed a margin of preference equal to the exlstlnq rate of custom's duty applfcable to competing imports or 15 percent of CIF prlce, whichever is lower. CONSULTANTS: About ten man-years of consultant services at an estimated cost of about $0.49 million (forelgn exchange about $0.42 million) would be provided for architectural and clvtl englneerfng services, teacher educator coordlnatton, farm mechanics teacher training and short-term • .consultants for teacher tralnlng program. Consultant architect services for pre-investment deslgns would also be provided under the p·roject. DATE OF COMPLETION: 1980