His Highness the Aga Khan strengthens continuing support to Afghanistan at the 2014 London Conference on Afghanistan

For the Ismaili Imamat and its Aga Khan Development Network, or AKDN as it is known, it is fundamental that the construction of civil society has been chosen as a national development priority in the Government’s reform agenda.

The AKDN has been designed and grown specifically to support that goal, wherever we are present. We vigorously support the commitment of the National Unity Government in that endeavour.

It can be achieved through partnerships, pluralistic equitable development, creating an enabling environment for peace and an improved quality of life in both the rural and urban contexts.

An effective enabling environment for civil society should seek to foster meritocracy, ethics and mutual accountability.

As a longstanding partner, including as one of the largest private employers and contributors to the Exchequer, AKDN’s investments and development objectives follow an integrated, multi-sector approach.

LONDON, Dec 4 (AKDN):

Bismillah-ir-Rahman-ir-Rahim

Mr. Chairman, the Right Honorable Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond
Honourable President Ghani,
Chief Executive Dr. Abdullah,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,

I would like to express my gratitude to the Governments of Afghanistan and the United Kingdom for co-hosting this Conference. We welcome the reform agenda of the Government of National Unity, and we re-affirm our commitment to the peoples of Afghanistan in their journey towards a stable, peaceful and prosperous future.

… As a longstanding partner, including as one of the largest private employers and contributors to the Exchequer, AKDN’s investments and development objectives follow an integrated, multi-sector approach. We have established long-term institutions in the region, including schools and hospitals, banking institutions, leisure facilities, and telecommunications. We are pleased to announce further innovations, including in cross-border hydropower, mobile banking, tele-medicine, and support to small and medium enterprises to serve even the most marginalised populations..

… Let me finish by saying that the priorities identified by the government will require sustained commitment and new mechanisms to create a meritocratic civil society. AKDN will most certainly contribute with its variegated resources.

Thank you.

Read the full address at AKDN Statement at the London Conference on Afghanistan – 4 December 2014 (Speech)

Background

London Conference on Afghanistan

The Conference was attended by representatives from more than 60 countries, as well as NATO, the European Union, the United Nations, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank as well as private sector and civil society leaders

AKDN & Afghanistan

AKDN began working in Afghanistan in the late 1990s, providing a range of assistance, investments and programmes, drawing on several decades of experience in the wider region. Since then, AKDN’s engagement has become a deep-rooted one, focusing on support to institutions and systems, particularly through public-private partnerships, as well as equitable access to, and quality of, social services.

More >> Aga Khan Urges Support for Civil Society at Afghanistan Conference

In Afghanistan, programmes of the Aga Khan Development Network (AKDN) include large-scale rural development; health, education and civil society programmes; microfinance services; the rehabilitation of historic neighbourhoods in Kabul and Herat; a rapidly growing mobile phone network; and the renovation of a five-star hotel in Kabul. With the support of its donors and partners, more than US$700 million has been channelled through the AKDN for Afghanistan’s reconstruction.

More >>  AKDN Activities in Afghanistan & Afghanistan_Country_Summary

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