Kabul, 27 March 2018 – Kabul citizens launch a three-day campaign on cleaning, greening and painting the capital city of Afghanistan on the occasion of the beginning of Nawroz. With the technical support of UN-Habitat, this activity intends to raise citizen’s awareness about the relevance of the sustainability of public spaces in our cities.

The main activities, adopted in consultation with the local communities, include community cleaning of streets; collection, segregation and transportation of waste; tree plantation for greenery and public paintings for the beautification of the city.

Members of the community engaged in cleaning and greening activities in Kabul. 27th March 2018 Kabul, Afghanistan

At the opening ceremony of the campaign, the Mayor of Kabul, Mr. Abdullah Habibzai, stressed that “it is impossible to clean and green the city without the participation of its residents… your participation in changing the face of the city into a modern and liveable Kabul is essential”.

 The three-day campaign is part of the UN-Habitat Clean and Green Cities (CGC) Programme which is undertaking the same activities in other 12 cities in Afghanistan. CGC is a USAID and EU funded programme which creates jobs for more than 13500 people, including women, returnees, internally displaced persons and vulnerable populations.

Investing in public spaces is investing social cohesion, inclusiveness, job creation and improved quality of life.

Female citizens participating in the cleaning and greening activities in Kabul. 27th March 2018 Kabul, Afghanistan

Solid waste collection in 10 districts of Kabul city. 27th March 2018 Kabul, Afghanistan

For more information, please contact UN-Habitat’s Head of Communications in Afghanistan, Mr. Koussay Boulaich,Koussay.boulaich@un.org