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Afghanistan: Provincial Reconstruction Teams

My Lords, the best provincial reconstruction teams bring together good governance and aid in conditions generally favourable to peace-keeping—mainly in the north and west, where a small military force can usually help to balance the power of local militia while providing security for reconstruction and development. The NGOs, as my noble friend so rightly said, have co-operated with the PRTs but have been cautious about their effectiveness in securing development, even through quick impact projects, because co-operation with any occupying forces could be seen as collaboration. The noble Baroness, Lady Verma, spoke of the trust that is necessary among local people. There is a much wider, related problem of governance, which also concerns NGOs, which is the imposition of the centralised state on traditional civil society. Part of the mandate of PRTs is to extend the reach of central government. Donors are repeatedly asked to strengthen the capacity of ministries to intervene more directly in provinces in which they previously had little or no control. It is not going to happen. New structures have been created by priority programmes such as the national solidarity programme, often with the effect of bringing new forms of democracy into villages as a precondition of development. Thousands of community development councils have been set up principally to channel funds into these programmes. This has also meant that NGOs have been drawn into a parallel network of government, away from the traditional shuras or councils of elders. An excellent report by ACBAR last December, quoting the World Bank, said that parallel structures inhibit capacity building and do not reinforce the state’s legitimacy but, on the contrary, undermine it. On the face of it, it looks correct to introduce more liberal traditions, such as more equal representation, human rights and the strengthening of the role of women. But that is an expensive if necessary process and NGOs fairly complain that they, although they are best placed to deliver on poverty reduction strategies, have been bypassed by the new structures. Academic work on the development of civil society in the Middle East suggests that the West is not only imposing solutions but too often ignoring the existence of traditional Islamic or tribal structures, which were developed before there was centralised government. These may already serve the population and maintain high standards of self-help, philanthropy and social welfare. While the first task of the PRTs is security, they should also be reinforcing traditional structures, because they are the ones that will outlast all foreign intervention. If the worst happens, they are absolutely essential. We should beware of stereotypes of authoritarian, male-dominated Islamic societies in need of our liberation. In any case, the picture is usually a mixed one; many shuras are already engaged with the modern sector, use mobiles and emails and quickly adapt and ally themselves with civil society and the private sector, enabling development to take place without too much government interference. So while NGOs are becoming impatient with bureaucracy, corruption, funding delays and the slow pace of reconstruction already mentioned, Afghans will not be further deceived into accepting western democracy and aid if that means giving up their own traditions and independence. Most Labour supporters believed that we came to Afghanistan to bring aid and governance, not troops, and they will sympathise with the remarks of Rory Stewart in the Independent, when he said that, "““we need to focus on areas… of the country where we are welcome, where people want us to work with them””." I look forward very much to the Minister’s reply and welcome him to this House.