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WASHINGTON, Nov 20: An Afghanistan reconstruction conference co-chaired by the United States and Japan convened here on Tuesday, designed as a kick-off effort to determine the extent of aid that will be needed to rebuild the Afghan economy, devastated by two decades of war and strife.
The one-day conference, which was scheduled to end later during the day, included representatives from traditional donor countries as well as the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank and the United Nations Development Programme.
There was no clear indication of why this US-Japan initiative has been arranged outside the existing framework provided by international fund-giving agencies, but administration officials say it is meant to underline the need for speed to agree on a framework for rehabilitation efforts. It also recognizes the fact that events on the ground in Afghanistan have moved faster than anticipated, and economic aid needs to catch up with the pace of political and military strategy.
The US also probably wants to retain management of the economic programme in its own hands while bowing to the United Nations to take charge of the political task of establishing an interim setup in Kabul. The conference is designed to hold out a credible promise of long-term economic engagement as a stimulant to Afghanistan’s contending political groups to come to a quick agreement on a new government.
Secretary of State Colin Powell, inaugurating the conference, made it clear that the gathering was not intended to be a pledging session, but rather to set in motion a process of evaluating and assessing the extent and cost of rehabilitation effort. He said the aim was to look beyond immediate humanitarian assistance and begin to tackle the task of rebuilding the country.
A steering group was scheduled to be established that would work in coordination with the already existing Afghan Support Group, which is presided over by Germany, and a follow-up meeting is due to be held in Islamabad next month.
Mr Powell said both issues of transition and reconstruction should be addressed, and he underlined the necessity of moving ahead quickly. “We can’t wait, we must act quickly,”he said. The people of Afghanistan should be reassured that “” we won’t walk away “ from the country as in the past.
Japan was represented at the conference by Sadoko Ogata, the former UN High Commissioner for Refugees, who emphasized the theme of” peace and reconstruction”, and criticized the international community for being too indifferent to the plight of the Afghan people.
Ignoring a failed or destitute country meant leaving it to become a hotbed of terrorism, he said.
Senior officials, briefing reporters before the start of the conference, said one of the purposes was to send a signal to countries surrounding Afghanistan, particularly Pakistan, that they would not, this time, be left holding the baby and that refugee resettlement would be given priority. Conditions needed to be created in Afghanistan that would lead to refugees going back to their homes, they added.
The officials also