Following is a transcript of Ambassador Finn's remarks to the April 10 Afghanistan Implementation Group meeting:

REMARKS OF U.S. AMBASSADOR TO AFGHANISTAN, ROBERT FINN, AFGHANISTAN IMPLEMENTATION GROUP MEETING, KABUL, APRIL 10, 2002

Mr. Minister, Mr. Ghani, ladies and gentlemen, it is an honor to represent the United States today. On October 7, when Operation Enduring Freedom began, it was difficult to imagine what a future Afghanistan would look like. Decades of conflict had destroyed Afghanistan's political, economic, and social fabric; despair and hopelessness had taken hold. Six months later, a new Afghanistan - one that does not provide safe haven to terrorists and traffickers, one that respects human rights and values its women and girls, one that is committed to educating its children - is taking shape. With music in the street, hope has returned.

This remarkable transformation has been made possible by the determined work of Afghans of all groupings in designing and implementing the Bonn Agreement, and by the dedicated efforts of the Afghan Interim Authority in setting out a new direction for Afghanistan and its people.

When the international community met to discuss Afghanistan's reconstruction in Washington in November and in Brussels in December, we lacked an Afghan partner. In Tokyo in January we found our Afghan partner with the international debut of Chairman Karzai and the Interim Authority. An agreed process is in place that will lead to broad based government that represents all Afghans - women as well as men, all regions, and all ethnic groupings. An Afghan-led reconstruction effort is under way. The Interim Authority has done a superb job in defining its priorities and presenting them in a coherent package.

In Tokyo in January, Secretary Powell noted the international community's shared goal to help Afghans rebuild a politically stable, economically viable, and secure Afghanistan. He announced at that meeting a U.S. pledge during fiscal year 2002 of $297 million in assistance to the Afghan people to rebuild their society and their nation, and to care for its refugees. He also said our assistance would focus on high impact projects that quickly create jobs, generate income, and get money flowing into the economy. The $297 million included about $125 million in food for relief and recovery programs, $84 million in international disaster assistance, development assistance and child survival assistance, $52 million for supporting the return and reintegration of refugees, and $17 million in economic support funds.

Your reconstruction efforts have had a good beginning, but ahead lay many challenges and many opportunities.

First, nothing that the Interim Authority and international community are trying to do in Afghanistan will work without stability and security. Working with the priorities laid out by the Interim Authority, in Geneva earlier this month we laid the groundwork to establish a truly national army and police force. These institutions can help unify the nation as a whole. The Geneva meeting also discussed legal reform and counternarcotics, both of which are key to good governance. If we can fully follow through on what we've laid out together, we will have a framework that will lead to a secure environment.

Second, I believe that the extraordinary post-conflict environment in Afghanistan requires intensive coordination between all the parties -- the Interim Authority, the UN, donors, the international financial institutions, and NGO's. This must be on-the-ground coordination that is flexible, informal, and continuous. Such coordination, which could mean weekly or monthly meetings, should not require decisions in capitals. As agreed upon in Tokyo, issues that require decisions in capitals should be dealt with in Steering Group meetings to take place periodically.

Third, we believe that NGO's have a very important role to play, since they will be key implementing agents in the reconstruction effort. I am glad there are a few NGO's present today, but I would encourage wider engagement by NGO's in the future. At the same time, I believe it vitally important that NGO's freely exchange information about their activities with the Interim Authority and donors. We all need to know what projects are being planned and pursued both to make maximum use of taxpayer and donor contributions, and to ensure that Afghanistan's people get the most out of our efforts. Capital projects need to be sustainable and we need to avoid duplicating one another's efforts. There's not enough money to waste.

Fourth, the reconstruction effort must be used to strengthen the Interim Authority and its successor transitional government; building a stable, productive Afghan state that provides security and economic opportunity for its people is our key goal. For that reason, we must all coordinate closely on our reconstruction activities.

Fifth, donors and international financial institutions should make every effort to make sure that the pledges they made in Tokyo translate quickly into on-the-ground projects. Afghans need to see that the Tokyo conference was for real. In this respect, I am glad to note that over $200 million of the pledge made by the United States has already been spent or expended. These projects - in the agricultural sector, to return and reintegrate of refugees and internally displaced persons, and on education and health care -- are now being implemented. The balance of the pledge will soon be obligated.

As I noted earlier, the Interim Authority has done a superb job of defining its priorities and developing a budget. But there remains a great deal of work to upgrade the absorptive capacity of the Ministries. To lay t he groundwork to address this challenge, the United States, has offered to fund a needs assessment of the capacity requirements of each Ministry.

President Bush has made it clear that the United States will not abandon the people of Afghanistan, and our commitment to assist them is for the long haul. While announcing the $297 million pledge in Tokyo, Secretary Powell said that the Administration would work with Congress to sustain our contribution in future years.

In addition to the $297 million pledged in Tokyo, we have asked Congress for a supplemental appropriation of about $280 million for Afghanistan. This request includes: $50 million to train and equip an Afghan National army and $20 million to help support their salaries, $60 million for counternarcotics and law enforcement, $80 million for political and budget support, and to help demobilize and reintegrate former soldiers, $28 million for ISAF support, and $40 million for other reconstruction activities.

This is clear evidence of how we intend to fulfill the President's promise.

Mr. Minister, the Interim Authority and the international coalition are winning the military conflict in Afghanistan. The more difficult task is to build on this success by rapidly implementing a comprehensive, Afghan-led and Afghan-implemented reconstruction effort that stabilizes Afghanistan and establishes a platform for sustained economic recovery. The United States is moving forward to assist in this vital process.

Thank you.