KABUL, Afghanistan, Oct. 23 (UPI) -- Corruption in Afghanistan's government has prompted the United Nations to award grants supporting three Afghan civil groups encouraging greater accountability.
The Afghan government has struggled to counter the opium trade and other threats to the country as a result of suspected widespread corruption at the national, regional and local level. The drug trafficking from Afghanistan has largely gone to fund the Taliban and other militant organizations.
As part of an effort to counter the corruption in Afghanistan, the United Nations Development Program announced it has awarded three Afghan civil society groups grants of up to $50,000 each for work on promoting government accountability and other anti-corruption activities in the private sector, the United Nations reported.
Officials say the grant monies will go to support government monitoring and corruption awareness-raising activities.
The U.N. Development Program grants are designed to "encourage the active involvement of civil society and media in the fight against corruption," Manoj Basnyat, U.N. Development Program country director for Afghanistan, said in a statement.
