Mar 30, 2010

Mariam Safi, a research fellow at (CAPS)

March 15th, 2010

‘Afghan leadership, Afghan ownership;’ another rhetoric of the Afghan conflict but one that carries a heavier task placing the burden of state-building upon Afghans for the first time in nine years. The London Conference on Afghanistan, held on 28th January, 2010 witnessed President Hamid Karzai’s determination in ending the deadly conflict in Afghanistan with the creation of an inclusive framework focused on six points of concern: Peace; Reconciliation and reintegration; Security; Good Governance; Fighting Corruption; Economic Development; and Regional Cooperation. These points are not any different then previous commitments made to Afghanistan; however, a significant development that set this conference apart from all others on Afghanistan was the international communities, namely the U.S. and U.K.’s of the National Reconciliation and Reintegration of Armed Opposition Groups. This is the single most crucial measure of Karzai’s framework. Karzai also intends to expand the Afghan security forces to 300,000 in the next five years with the support of a USD 140 million international fund to facilitate the transference of security from international to Afghan forces; an indispensable component of the reintegration process. Pronounced as a pivotal opportunity for Afghanistan to establish stability and security, the national reconciliation and reintegration initiative is nonetheless endowed with both various prospects and challenges.  (Full Artic, file type (pdf) 151 KB)