Two French Aid Workers Kidnapped in Afghanistan
According to ACF they have knowledge that the two staff members are still alive.
Kidnapping in Afghanistan: Two ACF Humanitarian Aid Workers Abducted
Two French aid workers kidnapped in Afghanistan
Vacancy - Security Specialist - Afghanistan
and www.undp.org.af
| TITLE | Security Specialist |
| AGENCY | UNDP/ELECT Project |
| DUTY STATION | Kabul, Afghanistan |
| VA IS AVAILABLE AT | http://jobs.undp.org/ |
| APPLICATIONS SHOULD BE TO SENT TO | http://jobs.undp.org/ |
| DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS | 15 July 2008 |
| EXPECTED START DATE | ASAP |
| DURATION | One Year (renewable) |
| TYPE OF CONTRACT | Appointment for Limited Duration (International) |
| LEVEL OF CONTRACT | ALD3 |
Massive Suicide Blast Targets Indian Embassy in Kabul
Three Afghan NGO staff killed in Air Strike
According to reports the aid workers were evacuating the area after receiving warnings of impending CF operations when their vehicle was caught in the air strike.
Two Merlin staff killed in Afghanistan
You can read Merlin’s statement at the link below.
Vacancy - ANSO Director - Afghanistan
ANSO is a project to support security awareness and security management capability amongst, Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) in Afghanistan with offices in Jalalabad, Herat, Kandahar, Mazar-I-Sharif and Kabul.
You can find more details, including how to apply, at the link below.
30% of aid money is spent on security for aid agencies?
If you read this blog you’ve probably already seen the article above. I almost didn’t read it because it looked like yet another “aid is inefficient and ineffective article”. It was the reference to NGO security costs that caught my eye. According to Integrity Watch Afghanistan, “Between 15 to 30 percent of aid money is spent on security for aid agencies, the IWA report said...”
What? Really? Where did those numbers come from? Given the difficulty I’ve had in finding money for things as simple as burglar resistant doors and decent fencing I really have my doubts.
If you download the full report you’ll see this:
For instance, the contracted security of the Kabul-Kandahar road during its reconstruction* prevented the disarmament of the equivalent of a whole private militia. Serious estimates put the number of armed guards who were used by the aid agencies at tens of thousands. An estimated 15 to 30 percent of aid money has been spent on security.
Maybe that’s where things got confused. To be clear the meaning of the statement “15 to 30 percent of aid money has been spent on security” is nowhere near the same as, “Between 15 to 30 percent of aid money is spent on security for aid agencies...” While considerable donor money might go to ‘security’ in Afghanistan it includes things like security sector reform, demining, counter-narcotics, police training, etc. This is not the same thing as “security for aid agencies.”
I’m pretty confident that aid agencies are not spending 15 to 30 percent of their budgets on their own security. I know mine isn’t. Most NGOs do not use armed guards and security budgets are generally small even if you include what are traditional safety costs.
* To the best of my knowledge the vast majority of the work done on the Kabul-Kandahar road was done by private contractors, not aid workers.
Vacancy - Senior Operations Manager/NGO Security Coordinator - Afghanistan
Under the direct supervision of AED’s Chief Operating Officer (COO), and working closely with the AED Chiefs of Party (COPs), the Senior Operations Manager/Security Coordinator will ensure that AED staff in Afghanistan can accomplish project goals in a safe and secure manner. Based in Afghanistan, the Security Coordinator will develop a set of minimum safety and security standards, and security procedures and guidelines, in co-ordination with the COPs and AED’s contracted security firm, to be agreed upon by the COO and implemented through existing organizational lines of authority within Afghanistan. The individual will work closely with the AED COPs to ensure adherence to the security standards which will be monitored and reviewed regularly and updated as necessary given the changing security context. He/She will provide ongoing advice and guidance in relation to such things as establishing curfews where needed, money management policies and practice, dealing with checkpoints, tracking systems for staff movement and location, general transport policies and staff preparedness for handling acts of violence. He/She will also liaise with the designated security company to ensure smooth and timely provision of guards, personal security details, armored vehicles, and transport convoys and monitoring staff stress levels, as required.
More details and directions for applying are on the AED website.
Old Choices Come Back to Haunt NGOs in Afghanistan.
To quote the ghosts again, “All it takes is for either the US, the Taliban, the locals or the central government to see it as political and becomes so...” Unfortunately that means your organization’s carefully crafted, acceptance based, security strategy disappears along with your perceived neutrality.
Read the whole post to see how your NGO’s choice of friends in the 80’s might be affecting your security today.
Vacancy - Regional NGO Security Advisor - Afghanistan/Pakistan
More Cartoons and More Threats
The drawing seems to be circulating quickly on Arabic websites.
In an apparently unrelated, but likely synergistic threat, AQ seems to include Norway as well as other EU countries on its target list as the story below highlights.
NGOs would be wise to monitor the situation closely. Any indicator of negative reactions to the new cartoon should be taken seriously and any necessary risk reduction and mitigation measures implemented.
Afghanistan Maps
Vacancy - Country Security Manager - Afghanistan
JOB DESCRIPTION
The person will operate as primary point of contact for all security issues
Activities planning
Maintain awareness of the security environment at all CESVI Afghanistan offices
Specify, implement and enforce security procedures
Review physical security guidelines, protocols, and emergency plans on an ongoing basis and updates them where necessary
Provide detailed analysis and recommendations for security and travel for any event or program activity held in Afghanistan
Provide routine and emergency security updates to Country Representative and CESVI staff
Develop a network of professional security contacts and local actors
Maintain a relationship with ANSO and other security-related offices (UN, military, private security companies, etc.)
Provide on-going security training and refresher courses on all aspects of security protocols
If you are interested send your CV to recruiting@cesvi.org and indicate that you are interested in position "41/2007 CSM AFGH".
Vacancy - ANSO Regional Safety Advisor - Afghanistan
The Taliban and Propaganda of the Deed
The incident on Sunday demonstrates a classic propaganda of the deed partnership in which the insurgents with growing skill select a media-significant target and with witless incomprehension international reporters beam the most sensationally damning images of the event around the world so as to deliver the worst possible interpretation. There is no need for a Taliban subtext or even a photo caption, the images speak powerfully for themselves sending messages of a stricken regime put to flight in their gilded uniforms by the daring fighters of the Taliban.
OK. Now go ahead and read the whole post.
Vacancy - Regional Safety and Security Advisor ANSO - Afghanistan
Candidates should send a covering letter and Curriculum Vitae with the reference code “AFG 3408” to Thomas Gies at recruitment.gies[at]dwhh[dot]de .
Afghanistan Non-Government Organization Safety Office Quarterly Data Report
Abstract:
NGOs have been directly targeted for attack on 29 occasions in the first quarter of this year with 16 of those attacks associated to Armed Opposition Groups (AOG) and 13 to criminals. Although comparable to last years figures in volume (30), the attacks of this year have resulted in many more fatalities indicating an escalation in the seriousness of attacks on NGO. This assessment is demonstrated in the fact that NGO incidents attributed to AOG have doubled from in first quarter of 2007 to 16 in the same period this year. The NGO incidents include, amongst others, seven AOG armed attacks which between them resulted in nine fatalities, nine injuries and near total destruction of two NGO compounds; seven armed abductions accounting for 12 persons kidnapped and an additional two fatalities including a female US citizen; and ten serious armed robberies accounting for one additional NGO staff injury and a long list of losses and damages to property. These figures are all higher than last year by a significant margin.
You can download the full .pdf report here.
KinderBerg Afghanistan Suspends Operations After Staff Kidnapped
Darfur, Afghanistan, Beer, and Breakfast
For those who haven't seen it before Google Trends compares the relative Google search frequency of up to five user specified terms. For example if you want to compare relative search interest in various hot beverages you might enter "coffee, tea, cocoa" and press search. Google Trends returns a nice neat chart that shows how many searches were made for each term over time. It also shows a "news reference volume" chart, or in other words the frequency with which the term has shown up in the media.
The chart above was
generated when I compared relative interest in
Darfur, Iraq, Afghanistan, and the Congo, with Sweden
as a control.
The results were pretty interesting. Searches for
Iraq seem to correspond with increases in media
coverage. No surprises there. The big surprise for me
was Sweden. Google user are more interested in Sweden
than they are in Darfur, Afghanistan, and the Congo.
Talk about forgotten conflicts!
Flag B is interesting. It marks George Bush's call
for more NATO troops in Afghanistan and clearly shows
an increase in media coverage of Afghanistan. It even
overtook coverage of Iraq for a short while. However,
the general public took no notice.
The regions chart is
enlightening. Americans are predominantly interested
in Iraq and seem to have forgotten about Afghanistan.
The Canadians, who have troops in Afghanistan but not
Iraq seem equally interested in both countries. And
finally, the Swedes seem to be totally obsessed with
Sweden.
Not without trepidation
replaced Sweden with "beer" in my search terms. I
shouldn't have. I now know that your average computer
using westerner is more interested in beer than they
are in Iraq and Afghanistan combined. "Darfur?...
never heard of it... do they have good beer?"
If you are feeling particularly masochistic try
breakfast
or worse boobs.
For a brief while in 2004 your average Google user
was more interested in what was happening in Iraq
than what they were going to have for breakfast.
That aberration hasn't repeated itself since. Its
also interesting to note that while American's
seem equally fascinated by Iraq and breasts,
Canadians have a distinct preference for the
later.
Vacancy - Security Coordinator - Afghanistan
Vacancy - Country Security Manager - Afghanistan
Send your CV to recruiting@cesvi.org and specify position number 41/2007 CSM AFGH.
Private Security Companies and Local Populations: An Exploratory Study of Afghanistan and Angola
Vacancies - NGO Security Positions - Afghanistan and Kenya
CARE International is seeking an NGO security intern to work in the Africa Security Office. It should be a great opportunity for someone seeking to enter the NGO security field.
The Globe and Mail "Talking to the Taliban"
