Bridging the Gap: Increasing Civil Society Participation in Afghanistan

April 2010. This study was designed to help Counterpart International, the Afghan government, NGOs and donors better understand the ways in which elected officials, government and civil society actors are currently working together to help shape laws and policies in Afghanistan.

Over the past ten years, as part of a larger effort to strengthen Afghanistan’s civil society, Counterpart has worked to build the capacity of CSOs through grant support and technical training. As part of that work, a study was undertaken as a way to better understand the ways in which elected officials and government and civil society actors are currently working together to help shape laws and policies in Afghanistan, as well as identify ways to improve their engagement. Through interviews and focus group discussions with representatives from all three sectors a great deal was learned about how engagement around the formulation of relevant laws and policies.

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