Afghanistan shuts down some foreign, Afghan aid groups

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Credit: Reuters

Tue May 11, 2010 3:39pm BST

(For more on Afghanistan, click on: [ID:AFPAK])

By Golnar Motevalli

KABUL, May 11 (Reuters) - Afghanistan has closed down 20 foreign aid groups and charities working in the country for failing to provide reports on their work and finances, the government said on Tuesday,

A government-backed commission decided that alongside 152 Afghan non-governmental organisations (NGOs), the groups should be dissolved with immediate effect, the Ministry of Economy said, adding they would be allowed to appeal the commission's decision.

The commission was established as part of President Hamid Karzai's efforts to tackle corruption.

Karzai has been critical of foreign organisations in Afghanistan, accusing them of contributing to high levels of corruption in the country.

"There are so many people who fill these places but they are not doing any work," said Sediq Amarkhil, a spokesman for the Ministry of Economy.

He said fraud and corruption were not factors behind the closure of the groups and that they were largely dissolved because of a lack of documentation and funding.

He added some NGOs requested to be dissolved after inactivity or failure to secure any funding.

NGOs are required by Afghan law to submit a report of their activities to the Ministry of the Economy every six months, Amarkhil said, and those dissolved had not submitted any information to the ministry for at least two years.

The number of foreign organisations linked to the conflict and Afghanistan's impoverished economy has swelled dramatically in the past few years since the insurgency regrouped and tens of thousands more foreign troops have been deployed to the country.

The economy ministry estimates some 1,224 Afghan and 301 foreign NGOs work in Afghanistan.

Included in list of the foreign organisations closed down were Christian charities such as Samaritan's Purse International and Thrive as well as children's charities such as Global Care. (Editing by Alistair Scrutton and Jerry Norton)





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