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WASHINGTON — The military command overseeing $15 billion in U.S. programs to develop Afghanistan's security forces cannot be sure the money is being managed effectively, a top government watchdog warned Tuesday.
In its first audit report since being formed a year ago, the office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction says the Combined Security Transition Command "lacks effective contract oversight capabilities."
It is the command's responsibility to ensure U.S. tax dollars are spent properly, the audit says. That means command staff must visit locations where contractors are working to verify that contractors are following the terms of their deals with the government.
"This is not happening," the audit said.
Arnold Fields, the special inspector general, said during a telephone interview with reporters there is no substitute for firsthand inspections.
"Those folks need to be on site for an extended period of time," said Fields, a retired Marine Corps general.
He acknowledged that tough conditions in Afghanistan can make long-term visits difficult. But the huge sums of money being spent require that level of oversight, he said.
Fields' office examined one training contract worth $404 million and found the official responsible for monitoring contractor performance was located at an Army office in Maryland — nine time zones away.
The report does not name the contractor because the auditors did not assess the vendor's performance. But in comments from command authorities in an appendix to the report, the company is identified as MPRI. Headquartered in Alexandria, Va., MPRI is a large consulting firm led by retired U.S. military officers.
The government contracting official in Maryland belatedly appointed a representative in Afghanistan to watch over the work, according to the audit.
But the auditors said the Afghan-based representative had limited contracting experience, had too little time to make field visits and was on a six-month assignment to the country — too brief to dig into details.
The mission of the Combined Security Transition Command, based at Camp Eggers in Kabul, is to help Afghanistan's government train and equip its army and national police. The command is led by a two-star Army general and includes officers from other members of the international coalition in Afghanistan.
In their comments, command officials didn't dispute the information in the audit. But they said they are concerned that the report gives the incorrect impression there is no oversight of MPRI's work.
The officials also said most of MPRI's employees work at Afghanistan's defense and interior ministries in Kabul and are seen regularly by command staff.
"The contractors who operate outside Kabul are watched at a commensurate level by our subordinate commands," the comments read.
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On the Net:
Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction: http://www.sigar.mil/
