Afghan Corruption

To reduce Afghan corruption, Secretary Clinton could ask for a simple-to-implement concession. Select an outside agency (a major accounting firm, for instance) to audit Afghanistan’s books and the financial records of its senior government officials and senior civil servants. For the first audit — to be conducted based on the records as of one day prior to the Afghan president’s inauguration — guarantee amnesty to leaders and civil servants associated with missing funds. Ensure that the independent audit — not controlled by the Afghan government — is repeated each year and after the first year prosecute fully any cases that are consistent with ongoing corruption and improper allocation of funds. If the punishment for corrupt practices is severe enough then leaders and civil servants will have the incentive to police themselves against corrupt practices. If the second audit shows continued corruption on a significant scale then the United States should cut off aid to the government. The risk of lost aid will further incentivize improved behavior, stimulating accountability to the people and improved performance by the government.

And if the Afghan government refuses to go along with this proposal that is a good indication that they do not mean what they say when they promise to crack down on corruption.

What do you think? Seems like this will ferret out the crooks and possibly put Afghanistan onto a healthier developmental course.