The desire for community participation in Afghanistan

The U.S. Institute of Peace held a discussion with Mohammed Ehsan Zia, Afghanistan’s minister of rural rehabilitation and development, on “Kick-starting the Virtuous Cycle? Security, Development, and Governance in Afghanistan.” Zia said security, development, and governance are the three major challenges facing Afghanistan, and that they must be addressed to rebuild the state, economy, infrastructure, and society.

Zia discussed the vision of the National Solidarity Program (NSP), where the first step was to create national development programs to provide a platform for donor contribution and donor coordination. Through active participation of citizens the NSP was able to start Community Development Councils (CDCs). He said there had been a disconnect between state institutions and citizens, and it was important to quickly get state institutions active.

Zia said the NSP has developed national programs for many areas of the community, including health, education, water supply and sanitation, and are even starting green programs. He said they are working in 32,000 villages in rural areas of the country, and that for the first time men and women in Afghanistan are empowered to make their own decisions, and have a genuine process of ownership and participation in the government.

Zia said that the perception in Afghanistan is that all types of development lead to security, but he has found that only government lead and people-owned programs have an impact on security and stability. He said the people of Afghanistan have a desire for a better future for their children, and feel committed to participate in the process and to live in peace.

For the future of the NSP, Zia said he hopes to see a continuation of development and strengthening of governance. He also wants to see the bylaws extended to let the CDCs look at all roles of governance.