Germany increases aid to Afghanistan, PakistanBERLIN, Nov. 24 (Xinhua) - Germany has decided to increase its development aid to Afghanistan by 52 million euros (around 78 million U.S. dollars), the German government announced here on Tuesday. Afghanistan would receive a total of around 144 million euros in 2009, to help the government of President Hamid Karzai to "consistently fight corruption, improve governance and create additional jobs," said a statement issued by the Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development. The huge fund is to be targeted at the Kunduz region in the north of the war-torn country, where Germany has up to 4,500 soldiers stationed and is responsible for regional reconstruction and development. The ministry also announced on the day that Germany would provide an additional 10 million euros in development aid for Pakistan, "for the improvement of governance." |
