Feeding an army in Afghansitan
December 7, 2009
Yesterday, 2 December, United States’ President Obama officially announced the dispatch of an additional 30,000 US troops to Afghanistan. In a speech in front of West Point cadets, the president pledged to fulfill a consistent strategy and ensure stabilization, security and development of Afghanistan.
This has so far proved to be a hard task. Afghanistan is among the least-developed countries in the world, with rugged terrain, thin insecure road network and relentless attacks on convoys and civilians. What little existing infrastructure there is is already strained and poses challenges to further troop increase.
Feeding and supplying an army of 100,000 soldiers (the total number after the announced reinforcements) is a vital task for its successful performance. However, it is a difficult one too as the transporting goods and equipment in Afghanistan is very dangerous and complicated.
Move One’s presence in Afghanistan provides support for the international forces that aim to bring stability to the country. With its four offices, Move One is able to transport goods, materials and heavy equipment where needed. Over the seven years on the ground in the country, we have developed unique expertise in navigating Afghanistan.
Move One offers its full portfolio – cargo, relocations and moving – on the whole territory of Afghanistan, including the dangerous southern and eastern provinces. Over time, our team in the country has grown to over 70 people, whose dedicated work ensures business accuracy and service excellence.
According to Gregory Forgrave, Move One’s Manager for Afghanistan, ‘our people there [Afghanistan] are the key to our success. Our local staff has helped us grow and understand the country better. We have a core team that has never left us and all success stems from their abilities and dedication.’
Security is always an issue in Afghanistan, even for those that have to provide it. ‘You can’t count on success today with yesterday’s security plan’, Gregory adds. ‘The situation is not static and planning is very challenging. Some days it takes me 10 minutes to get to the airport, next day I need an hour and a half to go through all the different security checkpoints.’
The US President has taken the tough decision to send 30,000 extra troops, but this is only where the hard work starts. Now logisticians will have to do something akin to moving small towns into mountainous war-torn country half way across the globe in heavy winter conditions.
Security analysts predict that the reinforcements will not be fully deployed before mid-march 2010. Once this happens, the additional personnel will, between them, consume about a million liters of bottled water every day. They will also need barracks, beds to sleep on, three meals per day, water sanitation and medical equipment, just to mention a few. With our dedicated efforts to timely and secure deliveries, Move One is playing its part to help stabilize Afghanistan and contributes to the international peace efforts.
We do this around the clock 356 days a year regardless of how challenging our destinations are. Move One stands ready to provide all necessary logistical support in Afghanistan and the region.
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