Research Study on Aid Effectivenessor SCA and Oxfam collaborate to commission this study. These two NGOs, as well as other members of the European NGO Network for Afghanistan (ENNA), plan to engage in joint advocacy on the findings of the study. Oxfam, together with ACBAR, carried out a comprehensivestudy on aid effectiveness in 2008. Since then, no report has been prepared on the topic, and the intention is to use the 2008 report as a baseline for the changes in aid effectiveness status until 2016.

Rational of the Study
On 5 October 2016, Afghan governmentmet with the international community at the Brussels Conference on Afghanistan (BCA) where leaders of Afghan national unity government presented its five-year strategy #Afghanistan national peace and development framework# ANPDF and made 24 commitments of SMART deliverables to be achieved during 2017 # 2018. These commitments are summarized under #self-reliance through mutual accountability framework# SMAF as SMART indicators that encompass six thematic areas, including the following: 1) improving security and political stability, 2) anti-corruption and good governance, 3) restoring fiscal sustainability, 4) reforming development planning and management, and ensuring citizen#s development right, 5) rule of law and human rights and 6)development partnership and aid effectiveness.

At BCA, the international community pledged the equivalent of 15.2 billion US dollar aid for Afghanistan for the next five years. Civil society organizations and networks carried out a substantial advocacy campaign before and during the BCA to draw international community attention to specific issues in Afghanistan.

In post-BCA, at the beginning of 2017, Afghan CSOs formed six civil society working group to follow up government commitments and campaignfor their implementation. SCA and Oxfam also joined the group on aid effectiveness.  SCA and Oxfam intend to publish this report in November and use the findings of the research for advocacy and lobbyingthrough 2018.


1. Objectives of the study
Thekey purpose of this study is to support an effective evidence based advocacy on aid effectiveness in Afghanistan as one of the key commitments between the Afghan government and the international community. The findings of the study will support the advocacy efforts of SCA and Oxfam, and other members of ENNA, at national and international level. It will also support the civil society-working group on aid effectiveness, coordinated by ACBAR .

Specific objectives
- Assess the extent to which the Afghangovernment and the international community met their aid effectiveness commitments of the past four international conferences on Afghanistan (Kabul 2010, Tokyo 2012, London 2014, Brussels 2016);
- Assess to what extent the international community fulfilled its aid promises to Afghanistan, and the actual amount of aid disbursed to Afghan government and spent.
- Assess the extent to which aid spent by Afghan government was effective and spent on intended purposes, and similarly assess the effectiveness of the aid spent by the international community directly.
- Assess the volume of aid and how it has changed over the years 2010-2016.