But a key issue in Brussels will be countering the huge waste of international aid funds that have poured into Afghanistan since 2001. The European Union’s foreign policy chief, Federica Mogherini, said late Tuesday the Brussels conference was “dedicated to the international support to Afghanistan, and to Afghanistan’s support for the Afghan people”. The United States and the 28-nation EU currently each provide about a third of all international aid to Afghanistan, with Japan the next largest donor. On Tuesday, Ghani attended an event in Brussels on female empowerment, a key issue in an impoverished, socially conservative Islamic country. Mogherini said the conference was “dedicated to all Afghan women and their talent and their hopes and their lives”.

Source: Manila Times October 05, 2016 10:52 UTC