Foreign Ministry Supports Afghanistan with Good Administrative Practice Training for Diplomats and State Officials

13.06.2011

No. 213-E

The Foreign Ministry is supporting the training of ten Afghan diplomats and state officials at the Estonian School of Diplomacy. The two-week training, which will focus on the European Union and NATO, will take place in Tallinn in the fall.

Foreign Minister Urmas Paet stated that Afghanistan is at the stage of its development where the country should soon be ready to manage on its own, and in order for the construction of the state to be successful an effective civil contribution is needed. “It will be possible to reduce the international military contribution when Afghanistan is largely able to manage on its own and will not be a threat to other countries. For this it is necessary to have state officials who know good administrative practice, and our project aims to give Afghanistan more government workers who follow good administrative practice,” noted the foreign minister.

Foreign Minister Paet said that Estonia’s goal is to strengthen the professional skills of young diplomats in Afghanistan’s foreign service, as well as their knowledge of communication with the European Union and NATO. “Estonia can share its experiences with building up statehood, good administration, institutional integration, and foreign relations,” he added.

During the two-week course, various facets of the EU and NATO’s Afghanistan-related activities will be introduced. The Afghan representatives will be introduced to various opportunities for creating ties with EU and NATO institutions, international negotiations will be carried out, and there will also be training in public diplomacy. Estonia’s practical experiences with building up its foreign service will also be covered. In addition to lectures, the course participants will also have meetings scheduled with their colleagues from Estonian state institutions.

Last year the Foreign Ministry supported the first two-week training course carried out by the Estonian School of Diplomacy for ten diplomats from Afghanistan.

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