Kabul, Afghanistan – USAID on Thursday announced a new engineering degree program with Kabul Medical University.

Kabul Medical University (KMU) and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) initiated the project at a ceremony on February 9. The program is designed to train technicians on how to repair critical medical equipment.

Modern medical equipment in Afghan hospitals and clinics is often provided by international donors and frequently needs specialized technicians for proper operation and maintenance.

In certain harder-to-reach provinces, critical equipment can sit idle if trained technicians aren’t available. The new Bio Medical Engineering Technology Program (BMET) will help address this problem.   

The BMET will address this gap by offering a two-and-half-year Associate Degree Program at KMU. Dr. Wahid Omar, Chief of Party for USAID’s University Support Workforce Development Program (USWDP) said, “KMU was selected as an institutional home for the BMET program because of its capacity, supportive leadership, and passionate faculty members. The team at KMU is committed to bring change in Afghanistan.” The first class of 30 BMET students is scheduled to begin their studies in August of 2015.

The educational initiative is part of USAID’s University Support Workforce Development Program (USWDP).  USDWP is a five-year, $91 million program that started in January, 2014. The program works with the Afghan Ministry of Higher Education and public universities to strengthen curricula and establish new academic programs.

• 2015 03 05 USWDP Release Final (Dari)
• 2015 03 05 USWDP Release Final (Pashto)