speech by swedish ambassador for children and armed conflict on afghanistan

The percentage of the population living below the minimum dietary level has increased from 30 to 35 per cent in the past year, increasing the need for food aid.Īccording to the National Human Development Report of 2007, literacy levels have fallen from 28.7 per cent in 2003 to 23.5 per cent in 2007. Though donor countries cite the return of six million children to school and the expansion of medical services and construction of roads as major achievements, there are limitations to the “success story”. Of the aid that has been given too much has been driven by the priorities of the international community and its security concerns rather meeting the needs of the people and building a more effective state,” he added. “The amount of international aid has been wholly insufficient given the huge job of reconstruction in Afghanistan. “So far international aid to Afghanistan has not gone far enough to alleviate the poverty and suffering of the Afghan people,” Matt Waldman, Afghanistan policy advisor for Oxfam International, said in a statement provided to Al Jazeera. Oxfam, the international development agency which has maintained a long-term commitment and experience in Afghanistan, is critical of both the quantity and quality of aid that has been disbursed in the country.

Some $15 billion has been spent on reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan since the US-led coalition deposed the Taliban and set up a democratic-influenced government in 2000.īut international aid groups believe donor priorities continue to overlook the needs of the people. Though school attendance for girls has increased, the country still faces severe poverty and malnutrition, NGOs have told Al Jazeera Īs the Afghan government and the international donor community meet in Paris on June 12 to decide the future nature of assistance to the war-ravaged nation, NGOs and rights groups are urging that the needs of ordinary citizens come first.

Speech by swedish ambassador for children and armed conflict on afghanistan