Karzai Stadium Reconstructed

June 25, 2009

Zainullah Stanikzai

LASHKARGAH (PAN): A playground was handed over to the provincial government after its reconstruction and renovation in this capital city of the southern Helmand province on Thursday.

The Karzai Stadium in Lashkargah was rebuilt and refurbished with financial support from the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), officials said.

Provincial Governor Gulab Mangal and other senior officials attended the inaugural ceremony for the renovated playground, equipped with modern sports facilities.

Speaking on the occasion, the governor said the stadium was reconstructed in three months under the USAID-funded Local Governance and Community Development (LGCD) initiative.

The playground consisted of two portions for volleyball, as many for tennis and one for basketball, said Mangal, who added digging of a deep well, reconstruction of the boundary wall and renovation of the surrounding area were included in the project.

He explained the football ground in the same area had also been renovated. But LGCD officials did not share information with Pajhwok about the total cost of the project.

Director Sports Ghulam Ghaus Dawari, who thanked the LGCD, demanded more assistance for promoting sports and recreational activities in the insurgency-torn province.

He told Pajhwok that sports activities in Helmand were more satisfactory than in other provinces, but they were faced with several problems that halted progress. He would not go into the details of the difficulties