International Civil Society and Private Sector Forum in support of Afghanistan (24th May 2008)

Background and issues

At the request of the Afghan government, France will host the International Conference in Support of Afghanistan on 12 June 2008, to be co-chaired by President Nicolas Sarkozy, President Hamid Karzai and the United Nations Secretary-General, to reaffirm political support to the Afghan people. It will build on the London Conference on Afghanistan held in January 2006 and the process launched in connection with the Afghanistan Compact. It has a dual financial and political aim.

Because international and Afghan civil societies are playing a large role in Afghanistan’s reconstruction, as it could be seen at the Berlin Conference in 2004 and the London Conference in 2006, an International Civil Society Forum was held on Saturday, 24 May 2008, at the International Conference Centre. This Forum provided substance for the senior officials’ meeting to be held on 4 June and the ministerial conference on 12 June.

Sustainable development in Afghanistan can only be attained if the Afghan people themselves are fully involved in the development process. Listening to Afghan local communities and civil society is a first step towards the Afghan people’s increasing their ownership of international aid.

The Forum’s central aims was to give a direct voice to Afghan and international private sector and civil society actors with a view to taking stock of the situation since 2001 and taking note of their expectations and recommendations. But it also aimed to reaffirm the role of civil society and the private sector as key partners in Afghanistan’s development.

Other objectives are to:

  Mobilize civil society and private sector actors and get them more involved in the management of international aid and in development strategies,

  Provide a forum for dialogue between Afghan and international civil society private sector actors,

  In line with the Paris Declaration on Aid Effectiveness:

• Identify and showcase best practices and success stories in development and reconstruction involving partnerships between the private sector, civil society and the state,
• Point out limitations and constraints that should be lifted to ease the involvement of private sector and civil society actors, and offer them a better enabling environment,
• Make practical recommendations to enhance the civil society and private sector’s role in strengthening aid effectiveness.

  Define concrete priorities for the civil society and private sector to improve the quality of aid and maximize its impact on the Afghan population in the coming years,

  Draw up recommendations to be discussed on 4 June and put forward on 12 June with a timetable and responsibilities identified, moving towards improved quality and ownership of international aid.