Abstract
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The point of departure of this report will be an exclusive focus on comprehensive approach (CA), the complex context of Helmand Province and the international and Danish setup there. The report will focus on the resources made available by the Danish state in the Afghan engagement. Fighting an insurgency like the one in Afghanistan is not just a job for the military. Experiences from previous and present insurgencies have shown that a variety of measures including political, economic and developmental play a signifi cant role in gaining progress and success in what can be called state-building. In Afghanistan, the term ‘comprehensive approach’ has been used to underline the need for a more cross-ministerial interagency approach when fi ghting the insurgency. A recent report to the US Congress views the importance of CA in the follo ing way “success will never be achieved through military means alone, but through a comprehensive approach that involves all elements of power: military, diplomatic, and economic. Above all, it will require a sustained effort to continue to develop the capacity of the Afghans themselves.” (Reportto Congress 2008 8). In this report the focus will be on local capacity building and the fact that CA by defi nition involves more than one player, and that one of these is often a military one....