Financial aid is a critical part of the international community’s role in Afghanistan. This aid is distributed through governmental and non-governmental channels. Below is a snapshot of international aid distributed from 2002-2009.
Total Aid
More than 70 countries and international organizations disbursed $35 billion in aid between 2001 and July 2009. Forty-five percent of the aid went to the security sector, 15 percent to infrastructure, 9 percent to agriculture and rural development and 6.6 percent to governance and rule of law. Other sectors that received aid include education and culture, health, social protection, economic governance and unclassified categories.
Through the Afghan Government
Approximately $8.69 billion of the funds have gone to government-managed assistance for recurrent expenditures. That aid accounts for nearly 80 percent of the country’s budget, including 100 percent of government-managed development expenditures and 36 percent of operating expenditures.
Direct Government Assistance: Approximately $3.6 billion has gone directly to the government, of which $826 million, or roughly two percent of all international aid disbursed in Afghanistan, was classified as undesignated general funds.
Government Trust Funds: $5.04 billion was disbursed through these internationally-administered donor pools. The money is held in trust and distributed to government-managed programs and budgets. The primary trust funds include the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund, Law and Order Trust Fund, and Counter Narcotics Trust Fund.
Outside the Government
Approximately $28.19 billion of aid to Afghanistan is provided outside of Afghan government mechanisms. Roughly half of this aid, or $14.87 billion, comes from donor countries’ defense ministries and agencies. Two examples of aid distribution that bypass the Afghan government are Provincial Reconstruction Teams and Afghanistan Social Outreach Programs.
Provincial Reconstruction Teams (PRT): PRTs provide services to the local population, such as the construction of roads and schools. These high-impact projects are designed to fill a gap in existing development efforts. There are currently 26 PRTs in Afghanistan with the United States leading 12. PRTs operate through military structures under the International Security Assistance Force.
Afghanistan Social Outreach Programs (ASOP): This aid program supports district councils in strategically important districts to serve as a counterweight to the insurgency. The Independent Directorate of Local Governance, a government body controlled by President Hamid Karzai, selects these councils, but the money that funds their work does not go through normal development-funding channels. Members of the councils work with local and international military and civilian officials to deliver services to local populations once their area is cleared of insurgents.
Ten Largest Donors (2002-2009) (in millions)
1. United States: $23,417
2. European Union/European Council: $1,576
3. United Kingdom: $1,546
4. World Bank: $ 1,364
5. Japan: $990
6. Canada: $898
7. Netherlands: $715
8. India: $662
9. Asian Development Bank: $618
10. Germany: $584
Data for this Background Basics was primarily sourced from the Afghan Ministry of Finance November 2009 report “Donor Financial Review” and the Center for American Progress report “Governance in Afghanistan: Looking Ahead to What We Leave Behind.”
