Practicum Summary:

Strengthening Synergy and Coordination Among Local Governance Institutions

The purpose of Ajmal’s research is to find and analyze ways to strengthen synergy and coordination among different local governance institutions in Afghanistan. After the establishment of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in 2003, various local government institutions have received funding, but have little or no understanding how these funds will be allocated to best serve public interests. A lack of synergy and poor coordination exists among the institutions and elites and warlords continue to hold significant influence on decision-making at the local level. Ajmal states the intent of his study is to understand the roles and functions of local government institutions, explore and analyze the interaction among local institutions, and to identify a way to apply a SEED-SCALE, bottom-up approach to improve their effectiveness. He focuses on four villages of Surkh Rod and Behsud districts in the Nangarhar province of Eastern Afghanistan. Ajmal recommends the promotion of a decentralized government with independent local institutions who are aware of each other’s duties in order to strengthen the political structure and coordination among branches.