IWA 2017-2023

Before the Taliban take over, coordinating mechanism were created among judges, prosecutors and defense lawyers in most of the targeted provinces, a cooperation which did not exist before, and was deemed successful. Furthermore, the Community Based Monitoring (CBM) of Schools component involved community leaders, and the broader community, in the monitoring process. Resources were mobilized from the community, such as cash or commodities, in a number of communities, and some communities also secured the participation of communities in School Management Shura meetings. At the local level, IWA especially noticed improved collaboration with officials in the Community Based Monitoring of Trials Community-Based Monitoring (CBM) IWA mobilized communities (66 new in 2019) and training and re-training Integrity Volunteers (56), out of which 12 were women. Around 70% of the infrastructure that had been monitored and deemed to be in an inferior state were fixed during 2019. IWA asserts that its CBM of schools was aimed at "increasing the integrity, transparency and accountability of the education sector through public participation". According to IWA, some of the CBM-S activities were successful due to the organizations less is more approach. By reaching out to fewer provinces, it became possible for IWA to concentrate its monitoring on specific areas. In combination with advocacy work, IWA has managed to create "a momentum in a province for education reform and improvement of service delivery" up to 2019. Through its CBM-Health program, IWA has had enough empirical material in order to release research reports on health facilities, demonstrating one of many example of where IWAs activities are interlinked to increase impact. Around 70% of the problems that the monitoring by communities of health facilities identified, were fixed. Research and Advocacy IWA produced around 10 research reports annually. Some notable examples of these reports and their impact include: Budget Credibility Report: IWA worked together with International Budget Partnership to assess the credibility of the former Afghan governments budget figures. The report showed that the development budget of Afghanistan was troubled by deep deviation, which, according to IWA, resulted in the failure of the former Afghan government to achieve its development and economic goals, including poverty reduction, job creation and economic growth. The report led to a debate about whether the Ministry of Finance was "influencing the budget process by manipulating budget figures without prior approval of the Parliament, thereby creating opportunities for misuse and corruption." Survey of Ministry of Educations Ghost Employees: Based on data retrieved from the CBM-School program. The study was conducted in three provinces Laghman, Parwan and Nangarhar, where about 100 relevant stakeholders were interviewed. In 2018-2019, roughly 300 advocacy activities were carried out. Some notable examples of IWAs advocacy work in 2019: Open Government Partnership: IWA worked closely with the former Afghan government, and led the consultative process, of the develop the OPG National Action Plan II. Anti-Corruption Commission: After several years of advocacy, a commission was established based on an effective anti-corruption law. Access to Information Commission: When the commission was first set up, it did not receive a budget from the government. IWA ensured that it did what it could to support the commissionaires at this time, and at the same time advocate for their sake. By the end of 2020, the commission had an independent budget that was part of the National Budget. Open Justice Resolution of Afghanistan: Based on data from CBM-Trial. The resolution was endorsed by influential stakeholders such as the Second Vice President Danish, the Ministry of Justice, and the UNAMA Director of Rule of Law. Nevertheless, the judiciary was still characterized by resistance to reform. Governance and Anti-Corruption Committee of the Civil Society Joint Working Group: IWA led the establishment of this group that consisted of 24 CSOs. IWA credits this, and other types of coalition building, with several of their advocacy successes during 2019. The years 2020-2021 saw a sharp decline in results due to Covid-19 and the Taliban takeover. Activities were largely halted due to the time consuming process of securing MoU from the Taliban authorities. In 2022, IWA was able to monitor almost 300 schools in 14 provinces. IWA has met many challenges due to the fact that DFA (Ministry of Education) has not been willing to issue a new MoU for IWA. Women could still be active in the volunteer community to monitor schools. During 2022 IWA and partners monitored 300 health clinics in 13 provinces. A total of 1 677 problems were identified of which 73 percent were resolved. In total IWA collaborate with 13 local partners. The health program at IWA was managed by a woman and about 30 percent of the volunteers were women. In order to reach the most vulnerable people, IWA provided financial and technical support to 13 local partners during 2022. IWA and its partners managed to conduct community based monitoring in 600 communities and 40 health centers and 40 health clinics in Kabul. IWA and partners have sensitized communities and promoted accountability. The program has prepared communities to conduct social audits. Since the access to information has been severely restricted in Afghanistan, alternative ways of collecting information for the social audits have been elaborated, e.g. receiving the information from World Food Programme. Integrity watch also continued its work with research, to find space for advocacy in areas such as budget transparency, access to information, municipal governance, the mining sector and the justice sector. The findings of the oversight of the humanitarian aid have been communicated to the responsible organisations of the distribution such as UN and IWA is pushing for response to the findings. The CBM-School initiative brought many regional and provincial stakeholders together, promoting the exchange of ideas, and generating innovative solutions. Community Feedback Group meetings remained at the core of CBM-School programming, alongside effective School Management Shura (SMS) operations. The outcomes of Sectoral Monitoring Group meetings and Education Cluster meetings have been positive in addressing school-related issues and improving the quality of education through advocating for identified problems, sharing their findings and challenges with education department officials and other stakeholders, and seeking assistance to enhance education quality for local communities. IWA were not able to secure a MoU with the Ministry of Public Health until June 18, 2023 (just before the activity period ended), after 18 months of advocacy work. Hence, most of the reported results were accomplished after the activity period ended. Examples of outcome based results: How a Local Monitor Saved Lives by Building a Speed-Breaker Ghulam Sarwar Shaheed High School is a bustling educational hub in Sheberghan, Jawzjan province. Established in 1972, it serves over 2,000 students of diverse backgrounds and genders. However, for many of these students, the journey to school risked their lives. They had to cross a busy road near the school every day, where cars zoomed past at breakneck speeds. Many students were hit by vehicles, suffering severe injuries, or even losing their lives. Their families lived in constant fear and anxiety, wondering if their children would make it to school and back safely. A girl was elected by the community as the school's local monitor. She had been monitoring the school since May 2022, and she was appalled by the dangerous, busy road. She decided to take action and contacted the school administration and requested a meeting with the School Management Shura (SMS). In July, 2022, she presented the problem to the SMS and emphasized its urgency. She proposed building a speed breaker near the school to slow the traffic and protect the students. The SMS members were impressed by her initiative and agreed to support her idea. They worked together to obtain the necessary permissions and resources to create the speed-breaker on the road near the school. After months of hard work and persistence, they finally achieved their goal: on April 5, 2023, a speed-breaker was created near the school. Though the solution was simple, the impact was immediate and profound. The speed-breaker dramatically reduced cars' speeds, giving the students enough time and space to cross the road safely. The students feel more confident and relaxed, knowing they no longer have to risk their lives for an education. Local Volunteer Uses Monitoring to Tackle Health Clinic Water Shortages A local monitor elected by the community for the Afghan Tapa Clinic in Sheberghan City, identified the critical issue of the clinics lack of clean water. Recognizing the severe health risks from this shortage, the local monitor initiated efforts to resolve the problem. Having identified the problem on October 20, 2022, he collaborated with the clinic supervisor to convene a meeting with the Health Management Shura (HMS) on November 13, 2022. During the meeting, he highlighted the situation's urgency and garnered support from HMS members to seek assistance from charity organizations. Through his persistence and advocacy, the NEED Charity Foundation was approached and made aware of the urgent need for clean water at the clinic. The Foundation agreed to help, and necessary permissions and resources were obtained to commence the construction of a water well, water reservoir, and lavatory at the health center. After months of concerted efforts, the problem was resolved on March 9, 2023. Access to clean water significantly improved, enhancing the quality of life for patients and clinic staff. The dedication and leadership in addressing this issue were instrumental in preventing the spread of waterborne diseases and ensuring the availability of essential water resources. This initiative demonstrates the vital role of local monitors in identifying and resolving challenges within health care facilities. Through volunteerism and community engagement, individuals contribute enormously to improving their communities' health services and overall well-being. Ghazni Province: Provincial Integrity Network social audit on incomplete school building With technical support from Integrity Watch, the Ghazni Provincial Integrity Network (PIN) performed a social audit on Sultan Massoud High School. The school, situated 50 km from the center of Ghazni in the Khaja Omeri district, accommodates hundreds of students in two shifts. Initially built in 2013 by the Ghazni Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT), the school remained incomplete due to financial issues and PRT withdrawal, forcing students to study in unsafe open spaces and tents. The PIN conducted the schools social audit on October 4, 2023. The audit noted the schools critical structural issues, such as the absence of a roof and doors, which exposed students and equipment to rain and sun. Further, there were no storage facilities to ensure proper maintenance of school furniture. Conversations revealed that no donor had been found to resume construction. Volunteer PIN members initiated advocacy efforts and engaged with education sector representatives to find a new donor. Despite challenges, including unclear documentation and budget constraints, the PIN persisted, eventually securing support from the charity Shahi Mardan for reconstruction. Community elders, students, and officials were impressed by the extensive community participation in the Social Audit and the commitment to Co-fund the reconstruction of the school. They expressed gratitude for the initiative and pledged to promote similar regional efforts.

Integrity Watch Afghanistan (IWA) is an Afghan-based and led organization. Its main goal is to empower citizens to hold public institutions accountable, as well as ensuring that the Afghan government was delivering on its promises to safeguard the integrity and transparency of impartial institutional bodies and preventing an increasing sprawl of corruption in the country. IWA's activities entailed from the beginning seven different outputs affiliated to three major components (main activities in parentheses): (1) Community-Based Monitoring (CBM) (monitoring work with specific focus on four sectors: Health, Infrastructure, Schools, and Trials.) (2) Research (measuring trends, perceptions and experiences of corruption. Launching the biannual National Corruption Survey and the Open Budget Survey) (3) Advocacy. (raising public awareness about the need for knowledge-based decision-making and informed public debate on corruption and integrity issues, as well as informing policymakers about the corruption issues citizens face in their daily lives). The initial agreement was signed 2017 and was initially supposed to be implemented between 2017-2020. The contribution has however faced many difficult challenges during 2020, 2021 and 2022 both due to the Covid -19 pandemic, the deteriorating security situation and the collapse of the previous government when the Taliban's took over Kabul and the entire country in mid-August 2021. Due to the new circumstances and that a lot of activities were no longer possible to implement, the activities have focused on the CBM of health centers and schools mainly.