Afghanistan
                              Country Partnership Framework
                                       Chair Summary*

                                       October 27, 2016


Executive Directors discussed the Country Partnership Framework (CPF) for Afghanistan for
FY17-FY20. Directors welcomed the progress that has been achieved in Afghanistan and the
government’s commitment to reforms and partnership that pave the way for development.
However, they recognized the serious economic, political, and security challenges going
forward. Directors recognized the important role the World Bank Group (WBG) plays in the
country and supported the new CPF as a basis for a 4-year program of support in alignment with
the Afghanistan National Peace and Development Framework (ANPDF). They stressed the need
for the WBG program to flexibly accommodate changes to the security situation, the challenges
of internally-displaced persons and returnees, and the risk of inequitable growth.
Directors noted the important role played by the WBG and donors, recognizing the high degree
of aid dependency and need for strong coordination and links between financing and outcomes.
Directors viewed the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund as a key mechanism for building
capacity, coordinating funding, and delivering services and infrastructure. Directors noted the
importance of effective risk mitigation, including measures to strengthen anti-corruption, noting
the increasing flow of aid to on-budget uses. They stressed the importance of capacity for
financial management and generation and management of domestic resources.
Directors emphasized CPF areas that are critical to medium-term growth and self-reliance, such
as building strong and accountable institutions, efforts to increase domestic resource
mobilization, and measures to enhance equitable growth. Directors viewed enhanced service
delivery and institution building as key factors for tackling fragility and building government
legitimacy and the contract between government and citizens. They welcomed efforts to
improve data collection, including on gender, and stressed coordination with donors on gender-
focused activities. They encouraged further work on the justice sector and continued
engagement with stakeholders and civil society. Going forward, Directors noted the potential for
investment in infrastructure; extractives – emphasizing the need for good governance;
agriculture; hydropower; and renewables. They stressed governance reforms and sound
macroeconomic management, in coordination with the IMF, to provide a foundation for future
private sector development. Finally, Directors commended the WBG Afghanistan team for their
efforts and commitment in a challenging development context.




_________________________________

* This summary is not an approved record