Canada to help Afghanistan in civil aviation - where we sink our money?

Canada to help Afghanistan in civil aviation

NEW YORK, March 8 (Pajhwok Afghan News): Canada has expressed its willingness to help Afghanistan in developing its civil aviation sector particularly those related to air and ground control and safety related issues.

This was conveyed to the visiting Afghanistan Civil Aviation Minister, Niamatullah E Jawid, when he met his Canadian counterpart, Lawrence Cannon, in Ottawa on Wednesday.

Both the ministers discussed a wide range of issues related to co-operation between the two countries in the field of civil aviation sector and how Canada can help us develop our capabilities of international standards, the Afghan Ambassador to Canada, Omar Samad, told Pajhwok Afghan News, after the meeting.

Besides, Samad, Yahya Mir, the Afghanistan representative to the International Civil Aviation Organization accompanied Jawid at the meeting.

Samad said though no agreement was signed during the first ever visit of the Afghanistan Civil Aviation Minister; this laid the foundation of a strong cooperation between the two nations in the coming years.

During the meeting, Jawid emphasized the need to build the technical and managerial capabilities of Afghanistan in this sector and urged the Canadian minister to assess the possibilities of providing assistance in the areas of need.

Canada, which has not only stationed its troops in Kandahar, but also providing lot of aid to Afghanistan would continue with its effort to help Afghanistan build its capacities in the civil aviation and transportation sector, Cannon said.

Details of the Canadian assistance in this sector are being worked out, said an official of the Canadian Ministry of Transportation, Infrastructure and Communities.

Jawid, who arrived in Canada on Tuesday, would be also attending a crucial NATO meeting at Montreal during his stay here. The meeting has been convened to discuss the issue of possibilities of opening up the Afghan airspace, which is under restricted use due to security reasons.