Political analysts are hopeful that the Tokyo Mutual Accountability Framework, or Tokyo Framework (TF), established between the Afghan government and the international community will set a new standard for aid accountability in Afghanistan. The great achievement of the Conference, they say, was the commitments made by both sides [the Afghan government and the international community] to achieve the TF’s objectives towards tackling corruption. Based on the TF, the international community will suspend aid if the Afghan government fails to address the objectives. But ultimately, it is the Afghan people, civil society, and lawmakers who must force the government to fulfill the TF’s objectives to end corruption, say analysts.
The Tokyo Conference held on Sunday, July 8 brought together representatives from 55 countries and 25 organizations from around the world. During the one-day conference, the international community pledged 16 billion US dollars of aid to Afghanistan over the next four years, with at least 50 percent of that aid to be channeled through the Afghan government’s national budget.
This is the first time that both the Afghan government and international community have established a formal framework to spell out the responsibilities of both sides in dealing with the new commitments and to mitigate against many of the ambiguities which have complicated previous commitments.
Two main issues were considered before the Conference. First, given widespread corruption, would the Afghan government be able to use the money effectively to strengthen good governance, tackle corruption, and support civil society and human rights? Or would the money be wasted, steeped in layers of corruption, as has so often been alleged?
The second issue examined the commitments of donor countries. Large sums of aid have been pledged in previous international conferences, much of which has not yet been handed over to the Afghan government. Many questioned whether donor countries would uphold their commitments this time.
President Hamid Karzai pledged to address issues of corruption seriously. “We are tackling corruption urgently at every point and ask our international allies to do so,” he said. Conference participants pledged long-term commitments to Afghanistan and asked the Afghan government to battle corruption and drug trafficking, and to ensure good governance so that the Afghan state can gradually assume greater financial management responsibility of aid funds.
This is the first time that both the Afghan government and international community have established a formal framework to spell out the responsibilities of both sides in dealing with the new commitments and to mitigate against many of the ambiguities which have complicated previous commitments.
Mahmood Saiqal, a political analyst and former
deputy minister for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Based on the TF, the Afghan government pledged to tackle corruption and strengthen elections, good governance, rule of law, human rights, and political finance transparency. These commitments are outlined under five objectives, each with detailed indicators to measure progress.
To ensure continuity and momentum, the Afghan government and international community decided to establish a mechanism to follow-up and review their mutual long-term commitments. For this purpose, a follow-up conference will take place at the ministerial level every two years beginning in 2014. Similarly, biannual meetings will take place among senior government officials beginning in 2013.
Tokyo Framework: a suitable solution to tackle corruption?
Mahmood Saiqal, a political analyst and former deputy minister for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, believes that the TF’s objectives indicate international distrust of the Afghan government’s willingness to confront corruption. “The International community’s re-emphasis on the need for the Afghan government to tackle corruption shows that it still does not trust the government to tackle corruption,” he said.
Sarwar Jawadi, a political analyst and former member of the National Assembly, argues that the Tokyo Conference is set apart from other international conferences, in that it established a timeframe for the provision of international aid within the four next years. Another conference will take place in two years in London to assess TF achievements and outcomes. “Corruption is widespread, but time to reach these goals is very short. So, the new mechanism will not work sufficiently,” he said. “No mechanism works without political will, and the government shows no intention of tackling corruption.”
Wahid Tawhidi, spokesperson for the Ministry of Finance, said that this kind of solid framework was not discussed in previous conferences and money was pledged without deadlines. Several donor countries have yet to uphold their aid commitments. “The TF is a big guarantee for the Afghan government that the international community will follow through with its commitments,” he said.
Jawadi believes that the aid will be reassessed after Afghanistan’s next presidential election in 2014. “After the 2014 elections, the international community will assess the two past years’ [2012, 2013] achievements to decide how to move forward accordingly,” he said.
Sarwar Jawadi, a political analyst and former
member of the National Assembly.
According to Jawadi, these measures are evidence that the international community wants to maintain the peace with Karzai’s administration for the remainder of his term, and will wait until after the 2014 election to see major changes. At that point the newly elected government will take greater steps to ensure aid transparency and efficiency, hopes Jawadi. “The current government has neither the time nor the willingness to ensure transparency. And it is unlikely such a willingness will emerge in the next two years,” he added.
Saiqal warns that the TF may not be enough to hold the Afghan government to its end of the bargain. “I hope this mechanism will be reviewed again in order to ease its implementation,” he said. “It is now up to the Afghan people, National Assembly and civil society to force the government to uphold its promises.”
Given the background of the current government, Saiqal is not so upbeat. He said the Tokyo Conference was the last chance for the country to address these challenges. “No matter what the government does, the people, civil society and the opposition must force the government to make good on its promises,” he added.
