What is the state of the Afghan economy? With the fate of the American military presence under discussion and efforts underway to further develop indigenous sectors and expand Afghanistan’s trade network, it is a time of economic change in Afghanistan. Will Afghanistan meet its growth goals? What are the government’s development priorities?

Ameen Habibi is the Deputy Minister for Policy and the Director General for Policy and Program Implementation at Afghanistan’s Ministry of Finance. Since 2012, Mr. Habibi has co-chaired the Asset Transfer Commission, which oversees the transfer of military bases from international security forces to the Afghan government. Mr. Habibi led the preparation process for the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS) and the coordination of its implementation with all stakeholders. Mr. Habibi holds a MA in Development Policies and Practices from the Graduate Institute of Geneva, Switzerland and a MA in Public Administration and Policy from Canberra University, Australia.

Khalid Payenda is the Senior Adviser to Afghanistan’s Minister of Finance and leads the newly established Macro-Fiscal Performance Directorate General of Afghanistan. In his current role, Mr. Payenda advises the Minister of Finance and the Afghan leadership on a broad range of key economic policy issues. He leads the design and implementation of Afghanistan’s public financial management reforms and the IMF-supported macroeconomic program for Afghanistan. Mr. Payenda also serves as the secretary of the High Economic Council that Afghan President Ashraf Ghani chairs. Prior to joining the Afghan Ministry of Finance in 2010, Mr. Payenda worked with the World Bank as an economist on poverty alleviation, fiscal reforms and macroeconomic issues. Mr. Payenda is a Fulbright scholar and graduated from the University of Illinois with a master’s degree in policy economics. He also holds an MBA from Preston University in Islamabad.

New America is pleased to welcome Deputy Minister Habibi and Mr. Payenda for a discussion of the state of the Afghan economy.

Lunch will be provided.

Participants:

Ameen Habibi
Deputy Minister for Policy, Afghan Ministry of Finance

Khalid Payenda
Senior Adviser to the Minister of Finance, Afghan Ministry of Finance

Moderator:

Peter Bergen
Director, International Security Program
@peterbergencnn