Govt pledges €5m for Afghanistan
The Government today pledged €5m in aid to help rebuild Afghanistan.
Conor Lenihan, minister for development co-operation and human rights said the funding would aid the country, one of the poorest in the world, along its path towards reconciliation.
“While many daunting challenges remain in the journey ahead, I believe that the people of Afghanistan have the courage and determination necessary to overcome them.
“Ireland will remain a committed partner to Afghanistan in that journey,” he said.
Afghanistan currently ranks 173 out of 178 countries on the Human Development Index as 70% of the population live below the poverty line.
The international community today launched ’Afghanistan Compact’ – a framework for engagement in the country for the next five years.
President of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai and UN secretary general Kofi Annan attended the launch in London.
The Government’s €5m will be spent over the next two years and will bring Ireland’s commitment to relief, reconstruction and recovery programmes in Afghanistan to €33m since 2000.
The latest pledge is allocated for basic humanitarian relief and the recovery activities being carried out by the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF).
The Trust Fund is managed by the World Bank and provides a co-ordinated way for donors to help the government of Afghanistan rebuild the country.
