Any assessment of the effectiveness of aid and development activities in fragile post-conflict countries such as Afghanistan must be based on a scrutiny of the extent to which the major drivers of fragility and root causes of conflict are addressed to build peace. And this, regardless of who the agent of delivery is: donor agencies of foreign governments or NGOs.

As a post-conflict society, Afghanistan faces numerous difficulties. Combating the sources of insecurity affecting people and communities, on the one hand, and advancing state building, on the other, are central to building peace in Afghanistan. Other than the Taliban onslaught, the root causes of conflict and the resulting insecurity are: poverty, unequal distribution of wealth and opportunities, and weak governance. Improved governance and delivery of services to enhance human security and reduce poverty are thus considered essential for sustainable cessation of conflict. A review of the role played by NGOs in addressing such sources of conflict and, more fundamentally, in strengthening the state and local government – the essence of state building -- will help assess effectiveness of NGO actions in Afghanistan.

The main driver of fragility in any post conflict or in-conflict country is a weak central government, without legitimacy and authority or control established through the length and breadth of the country. The weakness of the central government and its representatives in the provinces and districts, stems from their inability to deliver basic security and public services to the people. It is the weakness of the public institutions that disables governments of fragile states from delivering services to protect human security or reduce poverty. In the absence of its presence and visibility in service delivery functions, the government fails to earn the loyalty and support of the people, which is the main source of legitimacy of a government.  Legitimacy theory demands that it is not only important for governments in fragile societies to deliver security and development services but it is equally important that they are seen and acknowledged to be the service providers.