CANADIAN CONTRIBUTIONS IN AFGHANISTAN

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 03 KABUL 001492 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DEPT FOR SCA/FO, SCA/A PASS TO USAID FOR AID/ANE, AID/DCHA/DG NSC FOR JWOOD OSD FOR SHIVERS CG CJTF-101, POLAD, JICCENT E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PREL MOPS MARR PGOV PHUM AF CA SUBJECT: CANADIAN CONTRIBUTIONS IN AFGHANISTAN ¶1. Canadian security and development efforts in Afghanistan are substantial and noteworthy. Canada is a leading troop contributor. Its troops are placed in one of Afghanistan's most dangerous provinces, where they suffer frequent casualties. Canada is also a major donor, with Afghanistan representing Canada's largest-ever bilateral aid recipient. Security Contributions -------------- ¶2. Canadian military contributions in Afghanistan are substantial, ranking near the top of the list in both troops deployed and casualties. Since 2001, more than 18,000 Canadian soldiers have served in Afghanistan. Canada's current contribution of approximately 2,500 troops deployed to ISAF places it fourth among troop contributors behind only the U.S., UK and Germany. In terms of lives lost, Canada has paid a heavy price with 85 Canadian military personnel and one diplomat killed. Only the U.S. and UK have suffered greater losses. Canadians have not experienced such losses since the Korean War. Canada has suffered more combat deaths than any other coalition partner per capita. ¶3. Canada's significant troop contribution is concentrated in the volatile province of Kandahar. In Kandahar, heartland of the Taliban, Canadians face an active insurgency and large levels of poppy cultivation. The Canadian Joint Task Force Afghanistan (JTF-Afg),headquartered at Kandahar Airfield, consists of the following elements: a Battle Group operating as part of the Multi-National Brigade in ISAF Regional Command - South; the National Support Element; an Operational Mentor and Liaison Team (OMLT); a Tactical Unmanned Aerial Vehicle unit; and a Health Services Support Company. In addition, the Canadians assumed responsibility for the Kandahar Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) in August 2005. ¶4. Mentoring and supporting the fledging Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) in Kandahar is a key task for the Canadians. The Canadian Forces are currently mentoring five battalions or "kandaks" of the Afghan National Army (ANA) and one brigade headquarters through a Canadian-led OMLT. By 2011, Canada believes the ANA will demonstrate an increased capacity to conduct operations and sustain a more secure environment in key districts of Kandahar, with support from ISAF allies. ¶5. Canadian Police and the Canadian Forces have contributed directly to the training of more than 650 members of the Afghan National Police (ANP) through the Kandahar PRT, and Canada has provided funding for equipment, infrastructure and police salaries. Officers from Correctional Services Canada have also advanced correctional system reform through training, mentoring and expertise. Canada is optimistic that by 2011 the ANP will demonstrate an increased capacity to promote law and order in key districts of Kandahar, supported by justice-sector and corrections capabilities. Nationwide Reconstruction and Development Contributions -------------- -------------- ¶6. Afghanistan is Canada's largest-ever bilateral aid recipient. Canada's recent announcement of a CAD $600 million contribution to Afghanistan over the next three years brings its total contribution for 2001-2011 to CAD $1.9 billion. For fiscal year 2007-2008, Canada's assistance to Afghanistan totals approximately CAD $280 million. The majority of Canadian funds support Afghan-designed national programs such as the National Solidarity Program (NSP) and the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF). ¶7. Below are some examples of Canadian activities: ¶8. Basic Services: Canada's CAD $60 million contribution to the Education Quality Improvement Project (EQUIP) will help increase access, quality and gender equity in Afghanistan's education sector. The World Bank-managed EQUIP is Afghanistan's largest education program. The program supports activities that: * Strengthen the capacity of schools and communities to manage teaching and learning activities; * Invest in human resources (teachers, principals, and educational administration personnel) and physical facilities; * Reinforce the capacity of schools, District Education Departments, KABUL 00001492 002 OF 003 Provincial Education Departments, and the Ministry of Education; and * Promote gender equity by making female teachers and students a priority within each component activity. ¶9. Canada is also a major supporter of the NSP and collaborates closely with the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (GIRoA) to accelerate the roll-out of the program in Kandahar province. 2007-2008 Canadian disbursements to NSP total CAD $80 million. The NSP is the GIRoA's flagship program for community development, aimed at strengthening community-level governance and reconstruction. The program gives rural Afghans a voice in their country's development through the election of community leaders to community development councils (CDCs). ¶10. Humanitarian Assistance: Canadian support to the World Food Program (WFP) this year is close to CAD $40 million for Afghanistan. WFP delivers food aid to vulnerable people and populations, including drought-affected families, civilians affected by conflict or disaster, refugees who have returned to the country, and internally-displaced persons. The WFP provides food aid through general food distribution, food-for-work, food-for-education, and food-for-health programs. It also provides emergency food assistance, as appropriate. ¶11. Canada's contribution of CAD $10 million in support of a joint appeal from the GIRoA and the UN will help provide emergency food relief to an estimated 2.5 million Afghans who are facing food shortages as a result of rising food costs. Between January 2007 and January 2008, the prices of staple foods in Afghanistan have risen significantly. To address this emergency, the GIRoA and WFP will conduct interventions targeting food-insecure households, including an estimated 235,000 households in rural areas and another 190,000 in urban and semi-urban areas, representing an additional 2.5 million Afghans. ¶12. National Institutions: The Canadian contribution to the ARTF totals CAD $30 million for 2007-2008 and its historical contriubtion to date is almost CAD $200 million. The World Bank managed ARTF supports GIRoA efforts to re-establish a fully functioning and representative government system. The fund is instrumental in promoting medium and long-term economic growth and is the main vehicle for government outreach and services to Afghan citizens. The fund reimburses a portion of the Afghan government's day-to-day operating expenses, including expenditures for wages, benefits and other payments for government employees, as well as operations and maintenance of line departments. ¶13. Canada has also made a CAD $6.3 million contribution to the International Development and Law Organization (IDLO). IDLO has been active in various areas of justice in Afghanistan, building legal aid capacity in partnership with the Faculty of Law at the University of Kabul to provide legal aid training for new law graduates as well as training in civil/commercial law and gender crimes for judges and prosecutors. This project improves access to justice by promoting legal awareness, rendering legal practice more professional. Kandahar Development Contributions -------------- ¶14. Canada is providing CAD $17.5 million toward the World Health Organization's (WHO) Global Polio Eradication Initiative and Tuberculosis Control Program. Canada has provided strong support to the initiative since its inception. Last year, it committed CAD $5 million, which led to clear results - between 2003 and 2006, the number of children in rural Afghanistan aged 12-to-23 months that received the full dosage of oral polio vaccine increased from 30 percent to 70 percent. Canada's contribution of CAD $17.5 million this year will help build on these positive results by providing sustained funding for the implementation of the initiative. During the remainder of 2007 through to March 2009, immunizations will target 7.3 million children under the age of five, 1.2 million of whom are located in the southern provinces. Canada's contribution will also provide the WHO with continued support to implement the National Tuberculosis Control Program and help address the high rate of this disease in Afghanistan. ¶15. While the Polio Eradication Initiative and Tuberculosis Control Programme are national in scope, both initiatives have a special KABUL 00001492 003 OF 003 focus on Afghanistan's Southern Region, including Kandahar. ¶16. Working with the Asian Development Bank, the Afghan Ministry of Public Works and local contractors, Canada will assist with the completion of the highway between the districts of Spin Boldak and Kandahar, in Kandahar Province. The Canadian financial contribution is CAD $15.3 million. The 103-km Spin Boldak - Kandahar highway is one of the most important highways in Afghanistan. The road is one of only six major cross-border links with Afghanistan's neighbors. Much of Afghanistan's imports and exports have traveled along this important corridor, since it is one of the two principal roads between Pakistan and Afghanistan. Since Afghanistan is a landlocked country, the highway is also the shortest distance to a seaport. DELL