National Solidarity Program, Phase 2

Current phase: 2008-2011
Disbursed to date: $46 million

The National Solidarity Program (NSP) is the Government of Afghanistan’s flagship program for community development. It is aimed at strengthening community-level governance and reconstruction. The NSP enables communities to identify local development priorities through elected community development councils (CDCs).

The program helps the CDCs lead their communities through processes to identify, plan, manage, and monitor their own development projects. As a result, communities are empowered to make decisions and control resources during all stages of the project cycle. The program also promotes the inclusion of all groups, including women, internally displaced persons, returnees, and ethnic minorities, in project activities.

Canada is working closely with the Government of Afghanistan on accelerating the roll-out of the program in the province of Kandahar.

Results

As of August 2009, 21,947 CDCs had been elected across all 34 provinces, (more than 530 in the province of Kandahar). In addition, 30,928 projects have been completed (more than 800 in the province of Kandahar) in critical areas such as:

• water supply and sanitation (e.g., wells, hand pumps, water reservoirs, and public baths);
• irrigation (e.g., irrigation canals, aqueducts, dams, pipe schemes, and protection walls);
• transport (e.g., roads, culverts, retaining walls, and bridges);
• power supply (e.g., diesel generators and power lines);
• agriculture and livelihoods (e.g., animal raising, carpet looms, and sewing machines); and
• education (e.g., literacy courses, vocational training courses, and school buildings).