Afghanistan Times
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By Farhad Naibekhel-KABUL: The Rana think tank participants believe that Afghanistan has enough uranium resources which need a proper management and protection.
According to Rana think tank, beside copper, oil, gold and gems, Afghanistan is rich of mines of uranium and lithium. The uranium and lithium resources are located in Helmand, Farah, Kabul, Herat, Ghazni, Badakhshan, Uruzgan, Nangarhar and Nuristan provinces.
“Afghanistan uranium and lithium mines require management and protection and the government should get capability of extraction,” said Faiz Rahman Ishaqzai, lecturer in Kabul University and executive director of Natural Science Association of Afghanistan.
He said that the government must invest on education in physics science and provide scholarships for young generation in abroad to build capacities in the aspects.
“We need experts to utilize the mines and get benefit”.
Besides training programs, the government must establish a protection and management department, Ishaqzai insisted.
He said that uranium is the most valuable natural element that has enough resources in Afghanistan. If government gets capability to extract the resources, it will lead the country toward self-reliance in energy producing. No doubt that extraction of uranium will take long years and requires a comprehensive strategy and professionals, he asserted.
One kilogram coal will produce 8kwh energy, 1kg fuel produces 12kwh energy, while 1kg uranium produces 24,000,000 Kwh energy.
A university lecturer Danesh Bakhtiari said that Afghanistan is equal to Saudi Arabia in resources of energy, Saudi Arabia has enough fuel, but Afghanistan has more costly resources of uranium.
Afghan people must keep eye on this precious resource, he added.
Pointing to some political and conflict issues, he said aforementioned resources could be one of the factors of complex and imposed war on Afghan people.
Considering insecurity which is imposed on Afghan people, he said that there are probabilities that different countries keep eyes to loot Afghan resources particularly because of uranium.
Former Kabul provincial governor Abdul Jabbar Taqwa said that mines are national investment in the country that specialists are needed to extract.
“The government must invest on capacity buildings and trainings for extraction.
He urged young generation to consider natural resources as national wealth and protect them.
According to reports, only 30 percent surveyed mines and natural resources are estimated $3 trillion in the country.
