Afghanistan uses green stimulus to hire lockdown jobless, boost Kabul's water supply

KABUL (Reuters) - Zaker Hussain Zaheri was a cook in Afghanistan's capital who lost his job in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. Now, he digs trenches to capture rainwater and snowmelt on a mountain on the outskirts of Kabul, as the city grapples with both a water and health crisis.

Lockdown measures to curb the spread of the disease have taken their toll on Afghanistan's economy, so the government is employing more than 40,000 jobless workers to rehabilitate groundwater supplies for its fast-growing capital.