KABUL, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) -- The Afghan caretaker government's Ministry of Mines and Petroleum has signed a contract worth 163 million U.S. dollars for the construction of a cement plant in northern Jawzjan province, the office of the acting deputy prime minister for economic affairs said in a statement on Tuesday.
At the signing ceremony, Mullah Hedayatullah Badri, acting minister of mines and petroleum, said the plant, which has a 30-year contract, will produce 3,000 tons of cement daily, adding about 1,200 locals will get jobs in this plant.
In pursuit of self-sufficiency in cement production, the ministry recently signed several contracts totaling 476 million dollars with domestic and international companies in the provinces of Parwan, Kandahar, and Herat, Badri added.
Since taking power in August 2021, the Afghan caretaker government has been trying to rebuild destroyed cement plants and construct new cement factories in the war-battered country. ■
