Estonia's contribution to rebuilding Afghanistan

The civilian component

Afghanistan is one of the poorest countries on earth and its human development statistics are among the world’s lowest. A large part of the country’s population lives in extreme poverty, especially widowed women and their children. Close to 70% of the people are illiterate. 46% of Afghan children lack access to education. At the current rate of development, Afghanistan will have problems achieving practically all of the UN’s Millennium Development Goals.

The biggest development challenges are weak state institutions and insecurity, which has lasted for decades. Achieving stability is a prerequisite for sustainable development. Yet the challenges Afghanistan and the entire international community are facing cannot be solved by military means alone. For rebuilding a state, close co-operation between civilian and military actors is crucial. Estonia considers close co-operation between international organizations (including the UN, the European Union and the NATO) very important in this regard.

In July 2009 Estonian government renewed the document identifying Aims and Principal Positions of Estonia's Afghanistan Policy.

Since 2006, Afghanistan has been one of Estonia's priority partner countries for development co-operation. Estonia's support from 2006 to the end of 2008 amounted to 1 million EUR in disbursements. It projects a total amount of 1,3 million EUR for the period 2009-2011.

Estonian assistance given within the framework of development co-operation and humanitarian aid thus far:

• 64,000 EUR from the Estonian Red Cross in 2002 for sending bed linens, mattresses and first aid kits to Afghanistan.
• A total of 38,400 EUR in voluntary donations to support the UN High Commissioner of Refugees (UNHCR) in 2002 and 2003 in easing the situation of refugees in Afghanistan.
• 42,000 EUR toward the fight against narcotics in Afghanistan. The funds went to the Counter Narcotics Trust Fund (CNTF) in December 2005.
• 32,000 EUR to the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in 2007 for the Afghanistan Population and Housing Census project.
• 32,000 EUR in the end of the year 2007 to help the Afghanistan Center at Kabul University (ACKU) start construction of new premises for storing their collection of publications about Afghanistan, which will give better access to these materials to the students and professors of the University.
• 28 122 EUR for the promotion of the Afghanistan National Archives as a research resource and supporting the ABLE Boxed Library Extension project.
• 70,500 EUR for the pediatric ward of the Helmand central hospital in 2007 in co-operation with the Estonian Red Cross, which was used to purchase portable oxygen generators and warming beds for underweight and premature infants.

Meeting of the Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet and the President of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai in Kabul. January 2008.	Estonian health advisor Ms Anu Raisma with the first afghan patient using the new medical oxygen delivery system installed in Bost Hospital. August 2009.

Within the framework of the non-profit organization Mondo’s project medical equipment with a value of 188 000 EUR was donated to the Bost Hospital at the end of the year 2008. It included the medical oxygen delivery system, along with transportable medical oxygen tubing and medical supplies such as an autoclave, gurneys, wheelchairs, aspirators, throat masks, sterilizers, splints, crutches, and an ultrasound machine.

Estonia's envoy to Afghanistan

At the moment there are 6 civilian Estonian experts working in Afghanistan.

Since 2006, the Estonian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has been sending its diplomat to Afghanistan. Since March 2008, an Estonian health care expert has been working in the city of Lashkar Gah in Helmand province. He is implementing Estonia’s development co-operation project on location and consulting with the board of the United Kingdom’s development team and Helmand’s provincial government about developing the health care system.

Estonian Ambassador to Afghanistan Harri Tiido presented his credentials to President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Hamid Karzai on 24 March 2008. Ambassador Tiido resides in Tallinn, Estonia. He is also Estonian special representative for Afghanistan/Pakistan.

Between 2007-2009, the Estonian Ministry of Defence rotated adviser post in USA lead Combined Security Transition Command - Afghanistan (CSTC-A) in order to further the relations between the Afghan Parliament and the Ministry of Defence. Starting in 2008, Estonian police officers and political advisor are serving as members of the EU Police Mission to Afghanistan (EUPOL Afghanistan), and an Estonian civil servant on security operations is contributing to the United Nations Assistance Mission to Afghanistan (UNAMA).

Estonia thus now has means of gathering the information on the spot, which can be analysed and used to generate ideas as to which civilian projects and in what ways Estonia can best contribute in the future to the development of Afghanistan.

Estonian Chief of General Staff Colonel Neeme Väli, Chargé d'affaires in Afghanistan Daniel Schaer and civil expert from the Estonian Ministry of Defence Gerry Lesk in Kabul. July 2008.

Additional information about Estonian development cooperation

Military support

Estonia joined the war on terror in Afghanistan in 2002, taking part in the US-led operation “Enduring Freedom”. Since 2003, Estonia has taken part in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan (ISAF), which has become NATO's largest and most important military operation.

The function of the ISAF is to offer security, and in co-operation with other international organisations (including the UN and European Union) contribute to rebuilding Afghanistan, so that it will not be a security threat once again, as it was before September 2001. Accordingly, the ISAF operation in Afghanistan is also Estonia’s highest priority international mission. Afghanistan is the biggest foreign mission for Estonian Defence Forces in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), where 150-165 members of the Defence Forces are serving. Estonia intends to maintain this level of contribution over the next few years. The Estonian Parliament extended the mandate of Estonian soldiers in the ISAF until the end of 2009 with an overwhelming majority of votes. According to the mandate, up to 170 soldiers can participate in the mission. Mandate is now been updated.

Currently Estonia has aprox. 155 troops in Afghanistan, located mainly in the southern province of Helmand together with the armed forces of the United Kingdom and Denmark. Additionally Estonia sent 140 troops to secure Afghan presidential and provincial election in July 2009. With that additional contribution Estonia is the largest per capita troop contributor to ISAF for the period from July to December 2009.

The objective of the Estonian units in Helmand is, in conjunction with other countries, to help the government of Afghanistan create a safe environment in Helmand province for rebuilding efforts and the necessary conditions for bettering the daily life of inhabitants. In addition, the objective of the ISAF is to support the central government in southern Afghanistan in its fight against drugs, considering the fact that 90% of the heroin on the street in Europe is produced from poppies grown in Afghanistan.

Estonian units take part in the security operations against the Taliban together with Afghan, British, Danish and US troops. Estonian troops took part in the operation to free the Musa Qala region from the Taliban and at present are operating around Lashgar Gah, (capital of Helmand province). Since 2006 Estonians have been fighting under the British Command Task Force in Helmand and have suffered casualties – 6 soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan during our mission there. 43 Estonian soldiers in total have been wounded in Afghanistan (lightly wounded included). Additionally, Estonian soldiers are working in Kabul and Kandahar airports and ISAF Headquarters.

An Estonian soldier with local children in Afghanistan.	Estonian soldiers patrolling in Helmand province.

Assistance to Afghan National Army (ANA)

Donation of 4,000 AK assault rifles with five million rounds of ammunition was delivered to the ANA in September 2007. The American weapons specialists who oversee the maintenance of donated weapons before handing them over to their Afghan counterparts praised the Estonian shipment as being some of the best quality weapons they have seen among donations.

Assistance to Afghan National Police (ANP)

Estonia is participating in the European Union Police Mission (EUPOL) to Afghanistan with two police officers and a political adviser. The mission was established on 15 June 2007, its aim is to contribute to the establishment of sustainable and effective civil policing arrangements that will ensure appropriate interaction with the wider criminal justice system under Afghan ownership. EUPOL Afghanistan plays a central role in the provision of support to the Afghan authorities in key areas such as the strengthening of the Afghan criminal investigation system/intelligence-led policing, the implementation of an anti-corruption strategy and the improvement of the police role in securing key cities, such as Kabul and Herat. Currently 262 internationals from 21 EU Member States and four contributing states are serving in the mission.

This fact sheet was compiled in collaboration with the Ministry of Defence.

Useful links:

http://www.eupol-afg.eu
www.nato.int
http://www.jfcbs.nato.int/ISAF/
http://operatsioonid.kmin.ee/

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