Defense & Intelligence Policy, Business and Technology

Pentagon Watchdog Struggles to Teach Afghan Government Accountability Controls

Government Executive: Among the many reasons for the slow progress in stabilizing war-torn Afghanistan is poor communication between U.S. inspectors and the Kabul government on how U.S. support is tracked.

That’s the gist of a newly declassified report released in redacted form last August by the Defense Department’s inspector general reviewing the ability of the Afghan government to cost-effectively receive U.S. aid and transparently account for spending on personnel and equipment.

Afghan Defense Ministry officials working with U.S. and coalition advisers have begun implementing information-management systems designed to provide systemwide checks and balances, the report noted. But Afghan inspectors general have failed to follow established standards and there are too few advisers at the tactical level to ensure compliance in preventing waste and fraud.

Read article