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On 12 November in Vilnius, at the international conference “Road to Successful Transition in Afghanistan, Province by Province,” Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania Audronius Ažubalis underlined the importance of good governance capacity, which ensures aid effectiveness to Afghanistan.

“The experience we gained in the province of Ghor shows us that the lack of governance capacity is today’s key problem for the development of Afghanistan,” the Minister said during the opening of the conference in Vilnius.

Minister A.Ažubalis said that in creating secure environment and helping local Afghan authorities to gradually take over the responsibility in the province of Ghor, Lithuania concentrated its development cooperation efforts mainly in the areas of administrative capacity building, rural development, healthcare and education.

According to the Foreign Minister, Lithuania’s experience shows that the principle of an even development of all the provinces of Afghanistan is not always fully implemented on the ground. Poorer provinces would need this attention more, even though these provinces are relatively stable.

“Equal attention from both international community and Afghanistan’s gGovernment to all the provinces is the precondition for stable and secure environment in Afghanistan,” Minister A.Ažubalis stressed.

The Foreign Minister also noted the fact that the experience of the Baltic States in the governance and civil service reform could be adapted to respond to the needs of Afghanistan.

“The experience of successful transition to democratic society that we have accumulated during the 20 years and the lessons that we and our neighbours Latvians and Estonians have learned can be reasonably and efficiently used to benefit the people of Afghanistan,” the Minister said.

The international conference that was held by the Lithuanian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Vilnius focused on development cooperation activities in Afghanistan and issues of support for reforms in this country during the transitional period.

Participants of the conference also discussed the transfer of responsibility for the country’s development and governance to the Government of Afghanistan, responsibility of the country’s authorities, interdependence of security and development, and a more active involvement of women in Afghanistan’s governance. Great attention was dedicated to the factors that promote an even development of this country and to the coordination and integration of efforts made by the countries, which provide assistance to Afghanistan.

An exhibition about the exploration that was carried out by Lithuanian geologists in Afghanistan’s Ghor province is held at the venue of the conference. The participants of the conference were also able to be the first to view an exhibition dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Lithuania and Afghanistan at the Chodkevičiai Palace.