Civil Society in Afghanistan

For many Afghan NGOs are seen as representatives of the Afghan Civil Society. There are, however, a number of other structures and organizations to be included in such a definition. Most notable here are the community structures, often referred to as shuras or jirgas, religious networks, voluntary associations and interest groups and political parties. Since 2001 the number of Afghan civil society groups have not only had a sharp increase, they have also become much more visible and demanded influence on the peace process. Civil society representatives were invited to attend the Bonn Conference in 2001 and civil society groups have increasingly been drawn on in the pace process as a balance to military/political organizations.

Links:

• Afghan Civil Society Forum (Swiss Peace)
  http://www.swisspeace.org/acsf/

Publications:

Kristian Berg Harpviken, Arne Strand, Karin Ask (2002)
Afghanistan and Civil Society
http://www.cmi.no/publications/2002/afghanistan_civil_society_ver_18.pdf