Mazar - Supported by the German aid agency (GIZ) and UNAMA in the northern region of Afghanistan, an orientation on the national priority programme (NPP) for governance cluster was held in Mazar-e-Sharif last week.

Over 40 participants including the district governors, Provincial Council members, civil society and youth representatives and women’s rights activists attended the session.

A representative from the Balkh Provincial Governor's Office, Zabiullah Akhtari, described this programme as “exemplary joint collaboration between the Government, UN and the international community” that will boost coordination among Government officials.

"Organizing events that provide awareness and information about Government programmes such as the NPPs are believed to be needed to improve the quality of work and better delivery of aid to communities," said Mr. Akhtari.

NPP is a joint initiative by the Government and the international community since late 2010 to make the Afghan transition process smoother and more sustainable in terms of governance, security, and development as a derivative of the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS).

Information regarding the NPP initiative has not flowed to sub-national level in a seamless way and there has been limited awareness amongst provincial and district officials, but in line with UN and the international community’s efforts to develop the capacity of Government officials at sub-national level, this initiative plays a significant role in straightening cooperation and more effective exchange of information among the entities in the province.

"We’ve witnessed important infrastructure projects such as road construction being implemented in low quality or even left incomplete but nobody takes the blame due to lack of accountability," said Afzal Hadid, the head of the Balkh Provincial Council.
Periodic change of the district officials, insecurity, or poor accountability sometimes results in failure of some projects and dissatisfaction of the beneficiaries.

The same sessions will soon be conducted in four other provinces of the northern region, namely Jawzjan, Faryab, Samangan, and Saripul too.

By UNAMA Mazar