International Assistance and Governance in Afghanistan

Publication Series on Promoting Democracy under Conditions of State Fragility, Issue 2

International Assistance and Governance in Afghanistan

Governance involves more than just government, and encompasses broad questions of how Afghan society and its international supporters may deliver public goods in the area of security, representation, and welfare. Nevertheless, the state will have a central role in coordinating this delivery, and state-building is therefore the central concern for the country’s future.

The aid architecture to date has not been consistently oriented towards meeting this challenge, and changes are required both inside and outside the country to do so. The recent transition to an assistance framework based on the Afghanistan National Development Strategy and Afghanistan Compact presents opportunities to make these changes. However, this framework requires further elaboration to most effectively support governance-based solutions to the country’s challenges.