8th Joint Coordination and Monitoring Board (JCMB) Meeting

The discussions focused on the implementation of the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS), the Afghan Government’s medium-term development strategy presented in the Paris Conference on Afghanistan in June 2008. Other topics discussed were UNAMA’s role, the strengthening of the JCMB and a follow-up to Paris Declaration commitments.

The discussions on the ANDS implementation were based on the Benchmark Status Report, which assessed the progress made towards the benchmark targets set out in the Afghanistan Compact agreed in 2006. The progress towards the aviation sector benchmark was assessed as fairly slow with limited development made only at Kabul and Kandahar airports. The recommendations contained in the report highlighted, inter alia, the need to establish a Civili26 July, 2010 from ISAF/NATO. However, no tangible follow-up concerning the aviation sector was made during the JCMB meeting.

The meeting ended with the endorsement of the JCMB annual report, which again highlighted the need to step up support for the Afghanistan’s aviation sector. The main current challenges that were identified are the absence of airport plans and surveys, inadequate funding and a lack of institutional and technical capacity at the Ministry of Transport and Civil Aviation. In this regard, International Community support to the enhancement of MoTCA capacity remains crucial.