AFGHANISTAN: Donor conference boost morale – but huge challenges remain
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© Sultan Massoodi/IRIN
Disarmament has been proceeding in Afghanistan, but in the Panjshir valley, every male seems to brandish at least one gun
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KABUL, 1 Feb 2006 (IRIN) - Afghans welcomed further pledges of support from international donors at a key conference in London this week, but called on further government reforms to fight widespread corruption, opium trade and poverty in the post-conflict state.
Hosted by the UN, as well as the Afghan and UK governments, the three-day conference that began on Tuesday, also marks the launch of the Afghanistan Compact - a framework for engaging the international community in the country over the next five years.
Under the plan, specific targets for boosting economic and social development, bolstering security, enhancing governance, strengthening the rule of law and improving human rights, are to be applied.
Washington has promised US $1.1 billion for Afghanistan, while the UK says it will give $800 million as part of a five-year development plan.
"This is a crucial step towards a self-sufficient, prosperous and stable Afghanistan and demonstrates the strong commitment of the international community in the rebuilding of the war-ravaged nation," Qadam Ali Nikpai, public information officer at the upper house of parliament in the Afghan capital, Kabul, remarked.
"All Afghans appreciate such historic decisions after suffering decades of brutal civil war and destruction," Nikpai said, adding that the country still faced huge challenges of widespread corruption, illegal opium trade and poverty.
Ex-planning minister Ramazan Bashardost in Kabul, who is a member of the current parliament, added: "Deep and crucial changes are needed in the running apparatus of the current government. Billions of dollars of aid that have come into the country have done little to improve the lives of the people."
Commenting on the conference, local analyst Habibullah Rafi said the government had lacked any specific strategy for the implementation of the Bonn agreement – the original post-Taliban roadmap for the country – and had not brought major changes to the lives of ordinary Afghans during the past four years.
“Now, the government has presented a specific strategy for the next five years which needs a strong and active workforce for its implementation," Rafi maintained.
Billions of dollars in aid have brought new hospitals, clinics and roads to Afghanistan since 2001. School enrollment has soared from 900,000 to 5 million and many of the new students are girls, who had earlier been barred by the Taliban from studying.
But most Afghans remain mired in poverty and violence has flared in recent weeks. Many people complain that much of the aid money flowing in has been wasted.
"Lots of people are still enduring poverty, unemployment and there is no considerable change in our lives,” Farhar Ahmadzai, 31, living in Kabul, told IRIN.
Despite spending millions of dollars from the international community to tackle the menace, the nation is still the source of nearly 90 percent of the world's opium and heroin.
"Farmers have received nothing in terms of alternative livelihoods from the government and they have no other choice but to cultivate the poppy to make a living," Ahmadzai noted.
Security also remains a major problem, with about 1,600 people killed last year in militant violence, making 2005 the deadliest year since 2001.
The past four months have also seen an unprecedented series of 20 suicide bombings. The fighting has left parts of southern and eastern regions off-limits to aid workers, and a series of attacks on schools has forced many to close.
[ENDS]
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