Down at the District
A Look at the
District Delivery Program
by MAJ Gail Fisher
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In foothills of eastern Afghanistan on a brilliant
spring day, district elders from Sayyidibad crowd into a cold, sunlit room in
the cinderblock district center. They listen to speeches from men smartly
dressed in western style just arrived from Kabul.
An enormous wooden table sits squarely in the middle
of the room. The district center was built only three years ago, but a
florescent light already dangles precariously from the ceiling, one end free of
its anchor. Burnt-orange curtains, stained and torn, hang on the windows.
Brightly colored plastic-wrapped snacks are brought in with tea, and the
Provincial Governor gives his speech over the rattle of opening snacks and
sipping of tea.
The Provincial Governor speaks of endless disappointments, the Afghan central
government's broken promises, and proposes a way forward in the district.
Promise and caution comingle in the morning's remarks.
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MAJ Gail Fisher is a U.S. Army Reserve Civil Affairs
officer serving in the Future Operations Section of ISAF Joint Command, Kabul,
Afghanistan as a stability operations planner.
