Promoting the Effective Use of Aid in Afghanistan

For the past decade Afghanistan has been dependent on aid from other countries. According to the 2013 Development Corporation Report, on average foreign aid constitutes nearly the entire development budget and approximately 52% of the operating budget of Afghanistan.

More than 100 international actors are involved in Afghanistan’s development and aid processes. The Aid Management Policy (2013), developed through a multi-stage consultative process with development partners, civil society organizations and government departments central to the Afghan Ministry of Finance’s Aid Management Directorate, aims to support and accelerate Afghanistan’s goal of achieving increasing self-sufficiency by 2025 and incorporates the key agreements of the 4th High Level Forum on Aid Effectiveness “New Deal for Engagement in Fragile States” held in Busan, South Korea in 2011.

The document introduces at least 26 specific policies in seven prioritised thematic areas to address the issues and challenges related to aid delivery in Afghanistan. Nonetheless, despite the existence of such a policy there are still a number of conflicts and misconceptions between the development players and the Government of Afghanistan.

Accordingly, this paper intends to provide several recommendations to mitigate these challenges and align donor assistance to Afghanistan’s development priorities.