Conferences, calendars and caveats

In meetings with international donors and journalists ahead of the 20 July Kabul Conference, Afghan Finance Minister Omar Zakhilwal narrated an anecdote to illustrate the mismatch between the short-term aid being offered to his country and the sustainable projects that it needs. The site of the tale was an unnamed village in Marjah district of Helmund, recently the site of Operation Moshtarak, a long military operation to clear the area of insurgents. Soon after the operation, says Zakhilwal, villagers in the area were offered cash as a form of quick relief. Instead, they refused the money and asked for sustainable projects.

Whether the story is apocryphal or not, Zakhilwal's tale underlines both his own dilemma and that of his country. Unlike the villagers of Marjah, Afghanistan and its finance minister are unwilling or unable to turn down money coming from international donors, no matter what shape it is in or how many strings might be attached. Zakhilwal's story also demonstrates the larger challenges of the 'Afghanisation' that the Afghan government and the international community are trying to achieve, albeit with different goals, needs and outcomes in mind. Projected as a major step forward in the process of establishing Afghan control over the process of reconstruction of the country, the Kabul Conference was expected to discuss ways and means to transfer control of security, governance and development into Afghan hands. Key to the conference was the notion that, in the process of transition, the aid money should come under greater control of the Kabul government.