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Transcript/Script((PLAYBOOK SLUG: TV KABUL WATER SHORTAGE - Afghan
HEADLINE: Kabul residents queue up for hours to collect water as UN warns city’s groundwater could deplete by 2030
TEASER:
PUBLISHED AT: Thursday, 11/21/24 at 10:24pm
BYLINE: Afghan Service
CONTRIBUTOR: Roshan Noorzai
DATELINE: Kabul, Afghanistan
VIDEOGRAPHER: Afghan Service
VIDEO EDITOR: Afghan Service
SCRIPT EDITORS: KEnochs; Baragona
VIDEO SOURCE (S): VOA Original | VOA Afghan Service
PLATFORMS (mark with X): WEB __ TV _x_ RADIO __
TRT: 2:07
VID APPROVED BY: wpm
TYPE:
EDITOR NOTES: For footage:
https://app.frame.io/player/bec0aa6a-a2d6-4f57-b259-3e530cba517d ))
((SEND SCRIPT BACK TO ROSHAN & BEZHAN ONLY))
Links:
1) https://reliefweb.int/report/afghanistan/kabul-residents-endure-hours-long-queues-severe-water-crisis According to United Nations statistics, nearly 80 percent of Afghan families lack access to sufficient water for their daily needs.
((INTRO))
[[Kabul residents are struggling with severe water shortages, often waiting hours at the Afghan capital’s dwindling wells for drinking water. The United Nations cautions that urbanization and climate change could deplete the city's groundwater within the next 5 to 6 years. VOA’s Afghan service has this report, narrated by Bezhan Hamdard.]]
((VIDEO: VARIOUS SHOTS OF TENS OF EMPTY WATER GALLONS & PEOPLE))
((NARRATOR))
Residents of Kabul's Beni Hissar neighborhood spend hours in line to fetch water, as most wells in the region have dried up in recent years. One of the few remaining functional wells, located in Haji Mamor's home, draws people from miles away seeking access to water.
(((Haji Mamor, Kabul Resident (Male, Dari))) ((Video: 00:19 to 00:37))
“We let people get water from the well we dug inside our house. You see these barrels. When they are filled, other people come for water. Regarding water, we have a lot of problems.”
((VIDEO: ADDITIONAL SHOTS OF WATER BEING POURED TO EMPTY WATER GALLONS))
((NARRATOR))
The United Nations warned last month that Kabul’s ground water could be depleted by 2030 due to climate change and rapid urbanization. The U.N. called for “immediate action.”
[[https://kabulnow.com/2024/10/unicef-warns-kabuls-groundwater-may-run-dry-by-2030-calls-for-urgent-action/#:~:text=October%2029%2C%202024-,UNICEF%20Warns%20Kabul%E2%80%99s%20Groundwater%20Could%20Run%20Dry%20by%202030%2C%20Urges,intensifying%20impacts%20of%20climate%20change.
]]
((VIDEO: VARIOUS SHOTS PEOPLE IN LINE, KIDS CARRYING WATER, VILLAGE SHOTS))
Experts say that the water shortage in Kabul could be alleviated by restricting the use of underground water for industrial and agricultural purposes.
But authorities are looking at other solutions.
[[FOR RADIO: ...says water and environment issues expert Sayed Abdul Basit Rahmani.]]
((Sayed Abdul Basit Rahmani, Water and Environment Expert)) (Male in Pashto))
“The important thing is the transfer of water to Kabul, particularly from the Panjshir River. This should be the priority for the authorities as people in Kabul can’t wait for long-term projects. This is the solution in the short run.”
((VIDEO: PANJSHIR RIVER))
((NARRATOR))
A multimillion-dollar project to deliver Panjshir River water to Kabul is ready to start construction, Taliban authorities say.
[[FOR RADIO: Matiullah Abid is a member in the Ministry of Energy and Water]]
((Matiullah Abid, Ministry of Energy and Water)) ((Male in Pashto))
“In this regard, God willing, it will address the problems because it is a single project that would provide drinking water to 2 million people.”
((VIDEO: SHOTS OF THE VILLAGE AND RESIDENTS CARRYING WATER))
((NARRATOR))
But for now, some residents of Beni Hissar are thinking of moving to another part of the city where they could access water.
((Radio: Abdul Wasih is one of them.))
(((Abdul Wasih, Kabul Resident (Male, Dari))) ((Video: 2:02 to 2:14))
“We will be forced to move from this village. We were already displaced, and we will move to another place. We came here from Logar Province, and we will go somewhere else because of water.”
((VIDEO: ADDITIONAL SHOTS OF THE WELL, VILLAGE AND RESIDENTS CARRYING WATER))
((NARRATOR))
But the U.N. estimates that nearly 80 percent of the people in Afghanistan lack access to clean drinking water, so Wasih doesn’t have many options. (1)
((For Afghan Service – Bezhan Hamdard – VOANEWS))
NewsML Media TopicsArts, Culture, Entertainment and Media
Subtitles / Dubbing AvailableNo
NetworkVOA
Embargo DateNovember 22, 2024 05:40 EST
BylineAfghan Service
Brand / Language ServiceVoice of America - English
