Takhar University

The private sector is recognized as one of the key drivers of economic growth, job creation, and the improvement of people’s living conditions. This article, titled “Legal Frameworks for Supporting the Private Sector and Their Impact on Societal Development,” examines the role of laws and legal structures in supporting the private sector and their influence on economic and social development. The study aims to analyze the effectiveness of these frameworks and identify existing legal and operational challenges. Employing a descriptive-analytical approach, data were collected through the review of decrees, laws, official documents, and analytical sources. Findings reveal that despite the presence of supportive decrees and laws, issues such as poor coordination among laws, the absence of specialized institutions like commercial courts, bureaucratic obstacles, legal instability, weak contract enforcement, banking system challenges, and administrative corruption have hindered the full effectiveness of these frameworks. This research is significant because strengthening legal structures can contribute to economic growth, employment, and social stability in Afghanistan.

In this research, the correlation between bioactive compounds and drought stress was studied in 11 rice varieties. The rice varieties were divided into treatment and control groups, and the plants were subjected to different drought conditions, including 3, 5, and 7 days without irrigation. Among the rice varieties, K8 was the most tolerant, whereas K11 was the most susceptible to water deficit. The results showed that total phenolic content increased dramatically in K8 and K11 under a 7-day treatment (71.397 and 51.381 mg gallic acid equivalent (GAE)/g, respectively). K8 showed higher antioxidant activities (DPPH = 8.832 µg/mL, ABTS = 1161.8 µg/mL, and reducing power = 1168.2 µg/mL) after 7 days of no irrigation. Contrastingly, the IC50 values indicate that K11 showed lower antioxidant activity (DPPH=16.261 µg/mL, ABTS=1944.5 µg/mL, and reducing power=3721 µg/mL) for the same variable.

While the rate of scientific production and development is a key indicator in global university rankings, its pace in Afghanistan is notably slow compared to regional and international universities. This is largely due to the limited familiarity of many academic staff members with specialized software and statistical analysis techniques. This study aims to evaluate the role of statistics and SPSS workshops in enhancing the research capabilities of academic staff in Afghanistan. The study employed a descriptive-analytical, cross-sectional design, utilizing quantitative data collected through a questionnaire. The data was gathered from a one-week statistics and SPSS workshop held for academic staff at the Faculty of Education, Takhar University. Questionnaires were distributed and collected from participants at the beginning and end of the workshop. The findings indicate that the participants' overall mean score for statistical knowledge and skills was 2.4 before the workshop, which is below the average level. This score increased to 3.4 after the workshop, placing it above the average range. Inferential comparison of the scores from the two questionnaires using the non-parametric Wilcoxon test revealed significant and meaningful differences in scores following the workshop. The results demonstrate that the workshop played an effective role in improving research capabilities and increasing motivation for conducting scientific research. It is therefore recommended that universities in the country make greater efforts to organize workshops on research methods and statistical analysis.

Cooperative Learning as a student-centered approach to learning has powerfully influenced language learning since 1970s. The Jigsaw strategy which is one of the widely used cooperative-based instructional methods has been highly effective in improving students’ academic performance, particularly in reading comprehension. This study was conducted to find the effect of jigsaw on Afghan EFL learners’ reading comprehension and explore their perceptions towards it. The study used one-group pre/post-test experimental design. Participants (N = 20), selected non-randomly, were intermediate EFL learners from a Private Language Learning Institute in Ghazni, Afghanistan. Prior to the study, a pre comprehension test was administered. Students then were engaged in jigsaw activity for eight weeks, and finally sat for a post comprehension test. Comparing the means of two tests, it was found that the jigsaw intervention significantly improved the participants’ reading comprehension by the mean difference of 2.20. A paired sample t-test was further conducted, results of which indicated statistically significant difference in participants’ performance after engaging in jigsaw as the t-value was quite large (6.18) and the p-value was low (<0.001). In addition, a Cohen’s d effect size was calculated to understand the practical significance of the findings. The effect size was very large (1.38), indicating that the improvement was also practically meaningful.

Rapid sand filtration is typically used at water treatment plants to remove the fine suspended solid particles from the raw water. Backwashing of exhausted filter beds inevitably generates large volume of filtration sludge in water treatment plants. In this study, filtration sludge is collected, dried and crushed to powder, then passed through 90 µm sieve to get powdered filtration sludge (PFS) which is then characterized and utilized without energy intensive process of calcination. The PFS is blended with cement up to 20% and investigated for various properties to assess the possibility of its utilization in construction industry. Ordinary Portland cement (OPC) mortar or control mortar when substituted with up to 15% PFS has compressive strength above 33 MPa at 28 days and above 41 MPa at 90 days and setting times within prescribed limits. OPC blended with PFS up to 15% conforms various specifications desired for use in different construction practices especially where early strength is not essential. Utilization of filtration sludge as partial cement replacement in mortar would provide a beneficial and sustainable disposal alternative. Simultaneously it will reduce the cement consumption depending on the extent of its utilization. Consequently, it would help in conserving the natural resources, reducing the carbon emission and its related impact on the environment.

Criminal abuse of influence; in addition to disrupting the rule of law and governance, is one of the complex and serious problems of Afghanistan's judicial system and an obstacle to criminal justice. While the administration of criminal justice and the rule of law are considered the most important issues of governance and the judicial and legal system, this article, using a descriptive-analytical method and relying on library and documentary sources, attempts to answer this question: What deficiencies does Afghanistan's judicial-criminal policy face in dealing with criminal abuse of influence? Although this behavior is criminalized under the title of 'abuse of influence' in Afghanistan's Penal Code, findings from examining various dimensions of judicial-criminal policy in dealing with this phenomenon show that legal gaps, weak independence of the judiciary, inefficiency of oversight institutions, lack of coordination between judicial and legal institutions; non-compliance with fundamental criminal principles and sentencing standards, susceptibility of courts and judges to influence, and interference and influence by individuals throughout the judicial process are considered the most significant challenges in the judicial and legal system. The aforementioned deficiencies have led to increased corruption and public distrust in the judicial system, weakened the rule of law and judicial institutions, as well as caused the spread of judicial deviation and social disorder. Measures such as legislative reform and the development of comprehensive and clear laws regarding the crime of abuse of influence, specialized training for judges and staff of judicial and investigative institutions, implementation of measures to reduce political interference and ensure judicial independence, strengthening independent oversight institutions and increasing transparency, establishing effective mechanisms for cooperation between judicial and legal institutions to reform and strengthen judicial-criminal policy regarding criminal abuse of influence; are proposed.

The study investigated the purposes and techniques of learning the Persian language by nonnative speakers, its use in social settings, and learners’ motivation to highlight the necessity of planning a school-based learning curriculum, teaching methods, and providing its learning course materials in the country. A questionnaire with 30 items was used to collect data from 200 respondents from Taloqan city a northern city in Afghanistan. Participants were selected from university lecturers, school teachers, administrative staff, and businessmen who work in the exchange market. SPSS version 25.0 was used in data analysis. Descriptive statistics were used in data analysis. The results show that non-Persian speakers learn this language to use it in school education, academic studies, administrative affairs, and the business market. The Persian language plays a great role in Afghan people’s lives, as different linguistic groups learn it to use in the fields of education, official works, social communications, cultural behavior, media, and business activities. Learners mostly learn Persian in their childhood and teenage years using traditional techniques in informal environments and natural settings, as they learn it through their social interactions in school and open contexts and there is no systematic and purposive program for teaching and learning Persian. The of the study sows that Persian teachers and university lecturers have a big responsibility to do researches regarding the subject and academic institutes are asked to make policies and plans to provide teaching techniques and course materials for Persian language learners.

Empowerment in Afghanistan’s rural areas has the potential to significantly transform rural residents' knowledge, attitudes, and work practices. Empowerment is fundamental for achieving development, as progress without empowering marginalized Afghan communities is often deemed unattainable. Empowering rural communities can be understood as a process of enhancing individuals' capacities to utilize their autonomy and mobilize local resources in productive and innovative ways within their communities. Any community development initiative rooted in local resources should aim to reduce poverty in diverse rural settings. Therefore, to foster local development and advancement, it is imperative to focus on empowering these communities by harnessing their talents and capabilities and utilizing natural, social, and advanced technological resources. This approach paves the way for community flourishing and sustainable development. This study aims to formulate strategies for managing rural empowerment aligned with sustainable development. Using a qualitative content analysis of relevant sources, data were collected through document analysis. The research revisits past studies and theories, synthesizing them to introduce the background of empowerment while tracing the trajectory of research surrounding the necessity of empowerment with a sustainable rural development approach.

Since water is a polar molecule with a bent structure, it dissolves many ionic and polar substances. Ionic solids are mostly soluble in water and water is the most common solvent of known ionic compounds. In an ionic solid, ions with opposite charges are held together through electrostatic attraction. The solubility of a substance in a solvent at a certain temperature is the maximum amount of that substance that dissolves in a certain volume of that solvent. As a result of the dissolution of one substance in another substance, three steps occur: separation of dissolved particles, separation of solvent particles, and mixing of solute particles and solvent particles. The first and second stages are endothermic due to the separation of the molecules of the solute substance and the solvent from each other, and the third stage is exothermic due to the merging of the molecules of the solute substance and the solvent. The enthalpy of dissolution of one mole of solute in a large amount of solvent is called the enthalpy of dissolution of the same substance. The dissolution process is associated with energy exchange, which is obtained by using the enthalpies of the solute substance, solvent, and hydration enthalpy in the form of enthalpy of solution. The enthalpy of the solution is also determined using the Brunhaber cycle. If the set of mentioned steps gives numbers with a positive sign, the process is endothermic and if the numbers with a negative sign are obtained, the process is exothermic. Scientists use this property of dissolution of materials to produce heat-generating and cold-generating packages, which are used for different purposes. The methods used in collecting information to achieve the desired goal are of the library type and quantitative and qualitative methods are also used.