KABUL - On his last day in Afghanistan as the UN's top envoy in the country, the Special Representative of the United Nations Secretary-General, Kai Eide, releases a major policy paper calling for "a change of mindset" by the Afghan Government and international community.
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Introduction from the Special Representative’s paper

This year will be the most challenging we have faced since the fall of the Taliban. It is a year when negative trends will have to be reversed or they could become irreversible. Following two years of strong headwinds and a long period of political uncertainty, new political energy must urgently be mobilised. Furthermore, a change of mindset is required by the Afghan Government and the international community. If such changes cannot be produced soon, the overall situation will continue to deteriorate and become irreparable.

The political calendar is crowded and complex, with a national Peace Jirga, an international Kabul Conference and parliamentary elections all taking place in a period of six months. They will take place at the same time as Afghan and international forces are conducting the largest military offensive since 2002. These events will inevitably compete for political and public attention. While two of them – the Peace Jirga and the Kabul Conference – have the potential of becoming important unifying milestones, the other two – the election campaign and the military offensive – while necessary, can produce division and tension and undermine the positive effects of the Peace Jirga and the Kabul Conference. Therefore, the election process must be prepared and conducted in a way that is seen by all as a step forward in comparison with the 2009 election. And the military offensive must not undermine the potential for a political process to solve Afghanistan’s conflict.

Furthermore, there is tension between the political calendars of important international partners and the realities of the Afghan context. The clocks in foreign political calendars are too fast for the real pace of change in Afghan society. All have to be aware of this tension; Afghan authorities must be aware of the need to demonstrate determination to reform and the international community must demonstrate realism with regard to the level of expectations. Complete success is unachievable within one or two years in a country marred with conflict and fragmentation. But progress is achievable, and would demonstrate to the Afghan people and the international community that a durable solution to the conflict is within reach. Management of expectations will be demanding and necessary if we are to maintain the long-term partnership we all know is required.

The London Conference on 28 January helped create a more positive atmosphere and a greater sense of determination than what we had experienced in 2009. At the Conference, the Afghan Government and the international community committed themselves to a strategy of transition to enable the Afghan Government to exercise sovereignty over its territory. This does not mean an exit strategy, but reflects a need for greater Afghan leadership long wanted by the Afghan Government and now accepted by all. The Kabul Conference will have to transform this commitment into concrete programmes in strategic areas, such as institution-building and the development of human and economic resources. It must produce a real blueprint for transition and provide a political agenda that can attract attention and support in the middle of a military campaign. A nationwide civilian institution-building programme will cost several hundred million dollars. But that is pocket money compared to what is spent on the security institutions and will be equally important to expand the reach of government across the country. A genuine strategic economic development programme will cost more, but that cost will still be modest compared to the resources invested in security. Such a programme will however determine whether the international community can withdraw in dignity and the Afghan Government can move away from massive dependency to sustainable economic growth.

This paper presents the key elements of that transition, and the changes required to make it happen. It is not an all-embracing review of every challenge facing Afghanistan. Rather, it suggests an approach based on the building of real Afghan capacity to deal with these challenges. However, even if this paper is focused on a limited number of priority topics, progress in these areas would have a profound and positive impact on other critical areas, and in particular respect for human rights and the rule of law.