US wasted millions on Afghan reconstruction projects: Government watchdog
A US government watchdog has found that a Defense Department agency wasted millions of dollars on reconstruction projects in Afghanistan.
John Sopko, the Special Inspector General for Afghan Reconstruction (SIGAR), accused the Task Force for Business and Stability Operations (TFBSO) of “poorly planned and ill-conceived projects" in Afghanistan.
TFBSO, a division of the Pentagon established in 2006 to “stabilize” the post-invasion Afghan and Iraqi economy, has spent some $800 million on development projects over a five-year period.
The US Congress created SIGAR to provide independent and objective oversight of the Afghanistan and Iraq reconstruction funds.
Speaking before senators from a special committee on military management, Sopko said had "not been able to find credible evidence showing [the task force's] activities in Afghanistan produced the intended economic growth or stabilization outcomes that justified its creation."
"On the contrary, [its] legacy in Afghanistan is marred by unfinished, poorly planned, and ill-conceived projects."
Among the wasteful schemes highlighted by Sopko was a project to help the local cashmere industry. The $6million initiative saw a small herd of rare blond Italian goats imported.
But Sopko said oversight was so ineffective he could not be sure that the goats were not eaten.
The Pentagon has disputed several of his findings.
Last year, the embattled Pentagon agency was also blamed by the special inspector for building a $43 million gas station in Afghanistan and renting luxury housing for its employees.
The US and its allies invaded Afghanistan on October 7, 2001 as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but after 15 years, the foreign troops have still not been able to establish security in the country.
Despite a previous pledge to withdraw all US troops from Afghanistan by the end of next year, US President Barack Obama has announced plans to keep 5,500 of the troops in the country when he leaves office in 2017.
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