Jim Hogg, Purchasing and Inventory Manager for The Correspondence School, is currently serving as the Finance Officer with the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team (NZPRT) in Afghanistan. Jim is a Warrant Officer in the New Zealand Army, and has been a member of the Territorial Force for 34 years. He was given the opportunity to deploy to Afghanistan in October 2007. Jim has taken Leave without Pay from his usual job for the period of his deployment. He shares his impressions below.
28 January 2008
by Warrant Officer Jim Hogg
My main job in Bamian is to ensure that funds are available for the various projects that are contracted on behalf of NZAID. Those funds are also available for the ongoing operation of the NZPRT, and to ensure that appropriate measures and procedures are in place to satisfy Defence and Audit requirements. In this part of the world there is no electronic banking and all transactions are handled in cash.
The NZPRT was established as an International Security Assistance Force to bring stability to Afghanistan after the expulsion of the Taliban regime, however New Zealand is just one of many countries contributing to the operation. The NZPRT is located near the town of Bamian which is situated close to the sites of the famous Bamian Buddha’s which were destroyed under the Taliban regime.
Bamian is one of the poorer regions of Afghanistan. The local language is Dari and the main tribe is Hazaran. The climate is extreme - with winter temperatures as low as minus 30 and summer as high as plus 40. The majority of local buildings are made of mud and straw with walls about a metre thick which provides excellent insulation during winter and summer.
The area is populated with numerous caves many still being used as living accommodation. Most locals wash clothes, dishes etc in nearby streams and drains. In winter they just break through the ice, put on rubber gloves and carry on. There is no plumbing or sewerage as we know it. Fields are still ploughed using oxen, and donkeys are used as a means of transporting goods and people.
The NZPRT has, with finance from NZAID, managed contracts for building schools, police stations, and drilling wells. It has provided equipment to the local hospital such as defibrillators and generators. It also provides Humanitarian Aid. By conducting regular patrols through the province the NZPRT provides a measure of security for the local population. Schools and the Bamian University have reopened and the majority of residents experience a semblance of normality. Bamian Boys School currently has a role of 3000 and students are travelling from Kabul, the capital of Afghanistan, to attend the Bamian University. Opportunities for women are also increasing.
Members of the NZ PRT are currently providing dental services and English language classes to the locals.
There’s a steady stream of weapons and explosive ordnance being handed in which is a good indication that people no longer feel threatened and are comfortable being unarmed. Of course there's still a small part of the population sympathetic to the previous regime but the majority of problems appear to be instigated by people from outside the Province.
I feel I’ve been given a rare opportunity to contribute in a small way to the redevelopment of a country that to all intents and purposes has been in a state of war for the last 20 years or so.
Change is slow and incremental. There’s no easy fix over here.
Ends