Denmark's engagement in Helmand Province

The overall objective of the Danish engagement in Helmand is to contribute to stable and sustainable development through a comprehensive and fully integrated civil and military approach.

The Danish engagement will address radicalisation and aims at ensuring the active support from the local population to the government. The Danish assistance is implemented in close cooperation with the Afghan government, the international society and our allies in Helmand, first and foremost UK, in accordance with the agreed structure of the international presence in the Helmand province.

The Danish plan contains strategic objectives for the longer term as well as benchmarks for 2008. The planning and implementation of concrete activities will take place locally and take the evolving situation on the ground into account. The plan will be monitored on an on-going basis and will be updated annually in light of developments in the province. The one-year time horizon ensures the possibility for frequent adjustments in a situation with significant uncertainty and instability. In 2008 Denmark has prepared a strategy for the entire Danish engagement in Afghanistan for the period 2008-12 to replace the existing agreement, which comes to an end.

The plan for Helmand contains three focus areas: Security and stabilization, education and counter narcotics. The Danish security and stabilisation engagement, which is implemented through ISAF – should continuously contribute to assist the Government of Afghanistan in extending its authority across the Helmand province. Increased stability will pave the way for quick and visible reconstruction projects – and for long-term development.

Denmark and Afghanistan have jointly agreed that Denmark’s main focus should be on the educational sector, as it is at the national level. As such Denmark aims at ensuring synergy between national and local efforts making it possible for the Afghan government to become far more visible to the population in Helmand with regard to education.

Fighting the opium economy in Helmand is significant to the stabilization of the province and the possibilities for creating sustainable development effects. The Danish engagement in Helmand will therefore contribute actively to fighting the opium economy.

For the Danish Embassy website click here