KABUL, Oct. 16 (Xinhua) -- A check dam to help overcome water shortage has been constructed and inaugurated in Dawlina district of western Afghanistan's Ghor province on Wednesday, Provincial Director of Energy and Water Mullah Rahmatullah Amani said Thursday.
Built at a cost of 9.1 million afghani (around 138,000 U.S. dollars) and funded by the Ministry of Energy and Water with a capacity of storing 6,500 cubic meters, the dam would benefit several villages in the district, the official added.
The newly constructed check dam would also help the farmers to bring more lands under irrigation, the official further said, calling upon the locals to protect the facility in letter and spirit.
Afghanistan has been suffering from successive droughts, and the Afghan government, as part of efforts to overcome the water scarcity, has begun building check dams in almost every district of the country to increase water storage capacity, while mitigating flooding and creating job opportunities. ■
