Justin Sandefur is quoted about USAID's role in Afghanistan.
From the article:
As the U.S. military presence dwindles in Afghanistan, officials are finalizing a $200-million plan to use smartphones, GPS-enabled cameras and satellite imagery to monitor relief projects that will continue in areas deemed too remote or unsafe for Americans to visit.
The proposal underscores the rapidly diminishing American footprint in Afghanistan after nearly 12 years of war, and signals that more of the massive U.S. reconstruction effort there — long plagued by waste and weak oversight — will be monitored by Afghans, with U.S. officials forced to supervise from a distance.
The expansion of remote monitoring also comes as the United States funnels more financial assistance directly to Afghan government ministries, meeting a demand set by President Hamid Karzai. Experts have voiced concern about corruption and a lack of capacity in the ministries, and warned that direct assistance to Kabul could lead to more U.S. funds being wasted.
"Putting more money directly on budget through the Afghan government, I think, becomes increasingly problematic when you talk about USAID operating with a light footprint," said Justin Sandefur, a research fellow at the Center for Global Development in Washington.
Read it here.
