FULL TEXT OF THE AFGHANISTAN COMPACT

31 January 2007

Statement by Prime Minister Harper on the first anniversary of the Afghanistan Compact

The Afghanistan Compact, the successor to the Bonn Agreement, provides the framework for international community engagement in Afghanistan for the next five years. It was developed during a conference held in London from January 31 to February 1, 2006. Representatives from the international community, including Canada, attended the conference, which was co-chaired by Afghanistan, the United Nations and the United Kingdom.

At the conference, Canada pledged its full support and was instrumental in ensuring that the Compact included a mechanism to monitor programs and promote forward momentum.

The Compact sets out detailed outcomes, benchmarks, timelines for delivery and mutual obligations that aim to ensure greater coherence of efforts between the Afghan government and the international community.

The Compact seeks to build lasting Afghan capacity and effective state and civil society institutions, with particular emphasis on building up the human capacities of both men and women. It identifies three critical and interdependent areas of activity for the period 2006-2011:

   Security;

   Governance, the rule of law and human rights; and

   Economic and social development.