The European Union has just signed a financing agreement with Afghanistan. But it won’t be releasing all of the funds until significant progress is seen in Afghanistan’s reform of its justice sector.
EU Special Representative in Afghanistan Vygaudas Ušackas made the announcement at the signing of the bloc’s €60 million ($76.3 million) financing agreement with Afghanistan. Under the agreement, the European Union will be providing €40 million to boost good governance and rule of law in the country. But the remaining €20 million for the Afghan Ministry of Justice will be subject to conditions, according to Afghan business news portal Wadsam.
“We also need to stress that in the spirit of the Tokyo agreement support will be increasingly conditional of the delivery of the Afghan government on the agreed reform agenda,” Ušackas said in a press release.
It is not immediately clear what the conditions are for the eventual release of the deferred funding. But during a pledging conference for Afghanistan in July, donor pledges came with conditions, much of which focused on fighting corruption.
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About the author
Jenny Lei Ravelo@JennyLeiRavelo
Jenny Lei Ravelo is a Devex Senior Reporter based in Manila. She covers global health, with a particular focus on the World Health Organization, and other development and humanitarian aid trends in Asia Pacific. Prior to Devex, she wrote for ABS-CBN, one of the largest broadcasting networks in the Philippines, and was a copy editor for various international scientific journals. She received her journalism degree from the University of Santo Tomas.