On June 12, France will host the International Afghanistan Support Conference to be co-chaired by President Sarkozy, President Karzai and the United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon. The Conference intends to reaffirm international political support to the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and the Afghan people, while also presenting the new Afghanistan Development Strategy, a comprehensive five-year plan to improve governance, security, economic growth and poverty reduction.

Looking forward to this important event, Caritas Internationalis urgently requests all stakeholders to re-prioritize poverty alleviation and social justice as the primary objectives of development efforts.

Afghanistan today

In the past six years, since the Bonn Agreement initially set up a transitional government, Afghanistan has witnessed significant changes including the establishment of a national government, democratically elected president and parliament, unprecedented improvements in health and education services, as well as years of double-digit economic growth.

However, rebuilding an economy and a State requires decades, and Afghanistan remains one of the poorest countries in Asia. Afghanistan has some of the lowest development indicators in the world (Afghanistan ranked 174 out of 178 countries in the 2007 UNDP HDI Index), and in the 2007 Afghan National Risk and Vulnerability Assessment (NRVA) 45 percent of the population were estimated to have trouble meeting daily food requirements. Another 20 percent were estimated to be doing only slightly better and vulnerable to shocks.

In 2008, the worldwide food shortage is especially acute in Afghanistan and could potentially lead to a humanitarian crisis. Afghanistan is annually dependent on importing food, with the two main sources of imported wheat, Pakistan and Iran, greatly restricting their wheat exports. Prices in the capital, Kabul, have more than doubled since last year, and WFP placed an 80m$ appeal in January this year which will run out in June. In addition to undermining the coping strategies of millions, the rise in prices has already caused numerous demonstrations and strikes in all areas of the country.

Poverty reduction and social justice Development is the process of building up community and household social and economic capacities in order to reduce poverty and vulnerability, and promote social justice. Social justice refers to the presence of just social, political and economic systems.

The causes of poverty and its perpetuation in Afghanistan are multi-dimensional. Poverty is the result of past decades of violent conflict and its recurring threat, limited infrastructure and markets, de-centralised and nascent Government structures, massive displacement, social fragmentation and discrimination, regular shocks to community livelihoods including droughts, floods and diseases, limited arable land, environmental degradation, and numerous other factors. The importance and persistence of these factors vary between regions and communities. In addition the forced return migration of millions of Afghan citizens from Pakistan and Iran is a constant threat.

Given this context, sustainable poverty reduction and social justice are not simple tasks that correspond to discrete projects and short-term aid. To properly address poverty and social justice in Afghanistan, efforts need to be owned by communities and build on their current strengths and opportunities. In order to be effective and sustainable, development programs need to address the underlying causes of poverty and injustice and retain consistent, well-coordinated and long-term support.