Living high above Kabul

Sept. 27, 2012, 11:45 AM EDT

By Jon Sweeney

A young resident of the hillside neighborhood of Jamal Mina rides a donkey down to a water collection point high above Kabul on Sept. 27.Roberto Schmidt / AFP - Getty Images

Saber, a resident of the hillside neighborhood of Jamal Mina applies a layer of concrete to a room he was adding to his home high above downtown Kabul on Sept. 27.Jawad Jalali / AFP - Getty Images

According to an AFP report, approximately 20 percent of the Kabul's more than 5 million residents live on houses built on the steep hills surrounding the Afghan city. Running water was recently installed on some homes in the Jamal Mina neighborhood but open sewers still run down hill.

According to the World Bank more than a third of the population of Afghanistan live below the poverty line, more than half are vulnerable and at serious risk of falling into poverty.

A resident of the hillside neighborhood of Jamal Mina stands in front of his home high over Kabul on Sept. 27.Roberto Schmidt / AFP - Getty Images

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