Press Release

USAID partners with Roshan to create jobs for over 1,000 women

USAID, Roshan partnership creates innovative approach to economic and social development

Kabul, Afghanistan  | Thursday, November 01, 2007

Kabul, November 1, 2007 -   USAID’s Afghanistan Small and Medium Enterprise Development project (ASMED) and Roshan, Afghanistan’s leading wireless telecom company, have joined together to create a new approach to income generation and telecommunications access for the poorest segments of Afghan society.

The project, part of ASMED’s public-private partnership program, will help women in rural communities establish Public Call Offices (PCOs) in their homes and other locations such as small shops and health clinics.  An initial 500 PCOs will be established in Kabul, Nangarhar, Herat, Badakshan and Kandahar, creating over 1,000 jobs for women.

“The project allows women with little or no access to capital to tap into a proven, sustainable income stream within their communities,” explained ASMED’s Deputy Chief of Party, Bryan Rhodes. “At the same time, PCOs, especially in remote locations, allow for low-income Afghans to have access to telecommunications. They can purchase calls instead of cell phones, which may be beyond their economic reach. This project targets both the poor and women entrepreneurs.”

Working in partnership with several microfinance organizations, Roshan will provide women with PCO phones that enable them to track phone calls and all monies received.  Project participants will also receive business management training and will receive close support from regional business advisors during the first year of PCO operations.

“Roshan has pioneered many social responsibility programs in Afghanistan, with emphasis on helping women, who often are widows, struggling to be sole earners to support their families. We have successfully established over 1,500 PCO businesses across the country; however, expanding this project to women is a significant step to enable them to build financial independence while gaining new skills to run a sustainable business,” commented Altaf Ladak, Deputy CEO & Chief Marketing Officer of Roshan.

The USAID Global Development Alliance (GDA) program out of Washington, D.C. has contributed more than $1.1 billion to public-private alliances and leveraged partner contributions of over $3.7 billion worldwide since 2002.

Roshan (Telecom Development Company Afghanistan Ltd) is Afghanistan’s leading Telecom operator, with coverage in over 185 major cities and towns and over 1.6 million subscribers. Roshan directly employs more than 900 people and provides indirect employment to more than 20,000 people. Since its inception four years ago, Roshan has invested over US$260 million in Afghanistan and is the country’s single largest investor and taxpayer. Roshan is deeply committed to Afghanistan’s reconstruction and socio-economic development, while sustaining financial viability.