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UN: Corruption deepens poverty in Afghanistan
Corruption is entrenched in Afghanistan, leaving the poor at the mercy of the powerful while security-obsessed international forces often turn a blind eye to abuses, a United Nations report charged on Tuesday.
Despite $35 billion injected into the economy since 2002, one in three Afghans, or 9 million people, live in absolute poverty while another third survive just above the poverty line, it said.
"A key driver of poverty in Afghanistan is the abuse of power. Many Afghan power-holders use their influence to drive the public agenda for their own personal or vested interests," said the report issued by the U.N. human rights office.
As a result, the government of President Hamid Karzai is often unable to deliver basic services, such as security, food or shelter, or protect communities from lawlessness, it said.
Karzai says corruption is a problem in Afghanistan, but the West shares much of the blame for poorly managing billions of dollars in aid programs, which dwarf Afghanistan's own budget.