A Bank for Afghanistan's Reconstruction
Omaid Weekly # 510, January 28, 2002
Efficient and substantiated growth through the creation of a Bank for the Reconstruction and the Development of Afghanistan (BRDA) By Dr. Assem Akram
The International Conference on the Reconstruction of Afghanistan has just ended in Tokyo. Under the co-chairmanship of the United States, Japan, European and Saudi delegations, the participating 16 countries have pledged to contribute a total amount of about $4.5 billion for the recovery of war-devastated Afghanistan.
Although the target of 15 to 25 billion US dollars estimated to be necessary during the course of the next decade to resuscitate Afghanistan and put it on sound tracks not only economically but also socially was not met, the amounts pledged at this start can give hope of a sustained backing from the international community.
One of the main issues that lays not only ahead of the Afghan Government but also of the international contributors' community -- whether States or organizations -- is to assure a maximum of efficiency and transparency in the way sums are spent to acquire a correlated credibility, key to ask for and obtain more funds necessary for the completion of the daunting task set forth. I insist on the fact that it's to the mutual interest of Afghanistan and the international donor's community, as represented at the Tokyo summit, that what is accomplished in Afghanistan be a success. On that very success depends the credibility of the Afghan Government, no matter who runs it, and the credibility of the international community to showcase its determination to bring back to normalcy one of its own for the sake of world and regional stability.
It is in line with this very basic but fundamental reasoning that I am putting forward the idea of creating a body that would collect, control, and dispend the funds aimed at Afghanistan's reconstruction. The Bank for the Reconstruction and the Development of Afghanistan (BRDA) would be created in a common effort and participation between the Afghan Government, the Tokyo summit participant countries (expandable), United Nations, and international bodies and institutions such as the UNDP, World Bank, IMF, Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, etc. The BRDA would be headquartered in Kabul and its President would be appointed by the Afghan Government. The BRDA could take inspiration for its constitution and modalities after famed predecessors such as the IBRD or the BERD with a major difference that the Bank for the Reconstruction and the Development of Afghanistan (BRDA) would be concentrating its effort on a single country for which one must acknowledge the situation is specific and requires a sustained, targeted effort.
Let us insist once more on the fact that the creation of such an entity would be beneficial for both parties: the Afghan Government would be able to take advantage of banking, financial, and technical expertise. It would not have to spend an enormous amount of time to negotiate with "pledging" governments on ways and means to finally get the promised finances/assistance since everything would be centralized and somehow standardized through the BRDA. Indeed, the overall coordination and planning of the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan would be largely homogenized and coordinated as compared to a myriad of projects with as many promoters insisting on having it done their way or not at all: the kind of situation that could lead to an anarchic development definitely not for the good of the Afghan people and could result to a failure of the entire experience.
I am, therefore, urging the Afghan Government, the United Nations Secretary General's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, representatives of the Governments of the United States, Japan, the European Union, Saudi Arabia, the President of the World Bank, and other countries involved in the Tokyo conference on Afghanistan to adopt this idea and rapidly engage into discussions to make the BRDA a reality.
Efficient and substantiated growth through the creation of a Bank for the Reconstruction and the Development of Afghanistan (BRDA) By Dr. Assem Akram
The International Conference on the Reconstruction of Afghanistan has just ended in Tokyo. Under the co-chairmanship of the United States, Japan, European and Saudi delegations, the participating 16 countries have pledged to contribute a total amount of about $4.5 billion for the recovery of war-devastated Afghanistan.
Although the target of 15 to 25 billion US dollars estimated to be necessary during the course of the next decade to resuscitate Afghanistan and put it on sound tracks not only economically but also socially was not met, the amounts pledged at this start can give hope of a sustained backing from the international community.
One of the main issues that lays not only ahead of the Afghan Government but also of the international contributors' community -- whether States or organizations -- is to assure a maximum of efficiency and transparency in the way sums are spent to acquire a correlated credibility, key to ask for and obtain more funds necessary for the completion of the daunting task set forth. I insist on the fact that it's to the mutual interest of Afghanistan and the international donor's community, as represented at the Tokyo summit, that what is accomplished in Afghanistan be a success. On that very success depends the credibility of the Afghan Government, no matter who runs it, and the credibility of the international community to showcase its determination to bring back to normalcy one of its own for the sake of world and regional stability.
It is in line with this very basic but fundamental reasoning that I am putting forward the idea of creating a body that would collect, control, and dispend the funds aimed at Afghanistan's reconstruction. The Bank for the Reconstruction and the Development of Afghanistan (BRDA) would be created in a common effort and participation between the Afghan Government, the Tokyo summit participant countries (expandable), United Nations, and international bodies and institutions such as the UNDP, World Bank, IMF, Asian Development Bank, Islamic Development Bank, etc. The BRDA would be headquartered in Kabul and its President would be appointed by the Afghan Government. The BRDA could take inspiration for its constitution and modalities after famed predecessors such as the IBRD or the BERD with a major difference that the Bank for the Reconstruction and the Development of Afghanistan (BRDA) would be concentrating its effort on a single country for which one must acknowledge the situation is specific and requires a sustained, targeted effort.
Let us insist once more on the fact that the creation of such an entity would be beneficial for both parties: the Afghan Government would be able to take advantage of banking, financial, and technical expertise. It would not have to spend an enormous amount of time to negotiate with "pledging" governments on ways and means to finally get the promised finances/assistance since everything would be centralized and somehow standardized through the BRDA. Indeed, the overall coordination and planning of the reconstruction and development of Afghanistan would be largely homogenized and coordinated as compared to a myriad of projects with as many promoters insisting on having it done their way or not at all: the kind of situation that could lead to an anarchic development definitely not for the good of the Afghan people and could result to a failure of the entire experience.
I am, therefore, urging the Afghan Government, the United Nations Secretary General's Special Representative for Afghanistan, Lakhdar Brahimi, representatives of the Governments of the United States, Japan, the European Union, Saudi Arabia, the President of the World Bank, and other countries involved in the Tokyo conference on Afghanistan to adopt this idea and rapidly engage into discussions to make the BRDA a reality.