Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) is the U.S. government's leading
oversight
Oversight may refer to:
Governance
*Regulation – rulemaking
*Separation of powers in state governance (checks and balances) - the concept of separate branches of government or agencies exercising authority over one another
*Checks and control ...
authority on
Afghanistan reconstruction. Congress created the Office of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction to provide independent and objective oversight of the Afghanistan Reconstruction funds. Under the authority of Section 1229 of the
National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2008 is a law in the United States signed by President George W. Bush on January 28, 2008. As a bill it was H.R. 4986 in the 110th Congress. The overall purpose of the law is to authorize fundin ...
(PL 110-181), SIGAR conducts audit, inspections, and investigations to promote efficiency and effectiveness of reconstruction programs, and to detect and prevent waste, fraud, and abuse of taxpayer dollars. SIGAR also has a hotline that allows individuals to report suspected fraud.
Quarterly reports
Public Law 110-181 directs SIGAR to submit a quarterly report to Congress. This congressionally-mandated report summarizes SIGAR's audits and investigative activities. The report also provides an overview of reconstruction activities in Afghanistan and includes a detailed statement of all obligations, expenditures, and revenues associated with reconstruction.
As part of its legislative mandate, SIGAR tracks the status of U.S. funds appropriated, obligated, and disbursed for reconstruction activities in Afghanistan in the Quarterly Report. As of September 30, 2019, the United States had appropriated
approximately $132.55 billion for relief and reconstruction in Afghanistan
since FY 2002. These funds have been allocated into four major areas:
* $82.55 billion for security ($4.57 billion for
counternarcotics
The illegal drug trade or drug trafficking is a global black market dedicated to the cultivation, manufacture, distribution and sale of prohibited drugs. Most jurisdictions prohibit trade, except under license, of many types of drugs throug ...
initiatives)
* $34.46 billion for governance and development ($4.37 billion for counternarcotics initiatives)
* $3.85 billion for humanitarian aid
* $11.70 billion for civilian operations
History
Creation
The Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction was created with the enactment of
Public Law 110-181 when President
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...
signed H.R. 4986 on January 28, 2008.
Leadership
Inspector General: In 2012, President
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
selected John F. Sopko to serve as the Special Inspector General. Sopko has more than 30 years of experience in oversight and investigations as a prosecutor, congressional counsel and senior federal government advisor. He came to SIGAR from
Akin Gump Strauss Hauer & Feld LLP, an international law firm headquartered in Washington, D.C., where he had been a partner since 2009. Sopko's government experience includes over 20 years on Capitol Hill, where he held key positions in both the Senate and House of Representatives. He served on the staffs of the
House Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Select Committee on Homeland Security and the
Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations.
The Inspector General post was previously held by Steve Trent (acting), Herb Richardson (acting), and Arnold Fields.
Since being appointed, Sopko has testified multiple times before Congress on behalf of SIGAR.
Deputy Inspector General: Gene Aloise joined SIGAR on September 4, 2012, as the Deputy Inspector General, he oversees day-to-day operations and assists the Inspector General in executing SIGAR's mission. Aloise came to SIGAR from the
Government Accountability Office
The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) is a legislative branch government agency that provides auditing, evaluative, and investigative services for the United States Congress. It is the supreme audit institution of the federal govern ...
(GAO), where he served for 38 years. He has years of experience developing, leading, and managing GAO domestic and international work. His experience includes assignments with congressional committees as well as various offices within GAO.
Staffing and locations
According to the organization's October 2014 Report to Congress, SIGAR employed 197 federal employees. The report noted that SIGAR has 29 employees at the U.S. Embassy Kabul and eight other employees in Afghan locations outside the U.S. Embassy. SIGAR staff members were stationed at four locations across the country, including
Kandahar
Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a List of cities in Afghanistan, city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population ...
and
Bagram Airfields, Mazar-i-Sharif, and the U.S. Embassy Kabul. SIGAR employed three local Afghans in its Kabul office to support the Investigations and Audits directorates.
Recognitions
*In October 2014, Over two dozen staffers of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), were recognized for outstanding achievements at the 17th Annual Inspector General Community awards ceremony. The awards included the Sentner award, two awards for audit excellence and two awards for excellence special act.
*In October 2012, SIGAR Audit and Investigative Teams won CIGIE Awards for Excellence. The awards included the Sentner award, an award for audit excellence and an investigation award for excellence.
*In May 2012, SIGAR special agents received a Public Service Award today from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Eastern District of Virginia for their work in a major bribery case in Afghanistan.
*In October 2011 a SIGAR audit team was presented the Sentner Award for Dedication and Courage for its work in Laghman Province auditing the
Commander's Emergency Response Program.
*In October 2011 another SIGAR team won an Award for Excellence for its audit of Afghan National Security Force facilities.
Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) recognition & assistance
SIGAR, and its reports, findings and information, have also been widely discussed and distributed on Capitol Hill, the
US Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washingto ...
and with U.S. policymakers, by the Washington, D.C.-based Afghanistan Foundation, a non-profit public policy research organization (
NGO). SIGAR's efforts have helped educated and inform policymakers in public policy research organizations, and think tanks, about issues regarding U.S. assistance programs, aid levels, and various projects, in Afghanistan, including problems of
corruption in Afghanistan
Corruption in Afghanistan is a widespread and growing problem in Afghan society. Transparency International's 2021 Corruption Perceptions Index ranks the country in 174th place out of 180 countries, on a scale where lower-ranked countries are perc ...
, the
Kabul Bank
Kabul (; ps, , ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Afghanistan. Located in the eastern half of the country, it is also a municipality, forming part of the Kabul Province; it is administratively divided into 22 municipal districts. Acco ...
crisis and other important matters.
Investigations
''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'' has filed
FOIA lawsuits for government documents related to documents produced by the agency's
Lessons Learned Program. While the legal matter is pending before Judge
Amy Berman Jackson
Amy Sauber Berman Jackson (born July 22, 1954) is an American attorney and jurist serving as a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia.
Early life and education
Amy Berman was born on July 22 ...
of the
U.S. District Court in the District of Columbia, unedited transcripts of interviews have been released which reveal a pattern of disinformation on the part of U.S. government officials.
Oversight activity
Audits
SIGAR's Audits Directorate conducts audits and inspections of reconstruction activities in Afghanistan. These audits are aimed at a range of programs and activities to fulfill SIGAR's legislative mandate. They identify problems associated with the United States' reconstruction effort, and make recommendations to improve efficiency and effectiveness.
SIGAR's audits range from assessments of program direction to narrower examinations of specific contracts or aspects of contract and program management. SIGAR's inspections are quick-impact assessments to determine whether infrastructure projects have been properly constructed, are being used as intended, and can be sustained. SIGAR also conducts forensic reviews of reconstruction funds managed by the Department of Defense, Department of State, and the U.S. Agency for International Development. These forensic reviews identify anomalies that may indicate fraud.
Investigations
The Investigations Directorate conducts criminal and civil investigations of waste, fraud, and abuse relating to programs and operations supported with U.S. funds allocated for the reconstruction of Afghanistan. Results are achieved through criminal prosecutions, civil actions, forfeitures, monetary recoveries and suspension and debarments.
To accomplish its mission, SIGAR has full federal law enforcement authority through its enabling legislation as defined by the National Defense Authorization Act of 2008. SIGAR's Special Agents investigate crimes involving federal procurement fraud, contract fraud, theft, corruption, bribery of government employees and public officials, and a variety of civil matters pertaining to waste and abuse of U.S. taxpayer dollars.
* As of the October 2014 Quarterly Report SIGAR had 322 ongoing investigations.
Special Projects
SIGAR's Special Projects team was created to examine emerging issues and deliver prompt, actionable reports to federal agencies and the Congress. Special Project's reports cover a wide range of programs and activities and the office is made up of auditors, analysts, investigators, lawyers, subject-matter experts and other specialists who can quickly and jointly apply their expertise to emerging problems and questions.
Partners
Under its enabling legislation, SIGAR coordinates with and receives the cooperation of the following organizations while conducting oversight of U.S. reconstruction efforts in Afghanistan:
*
Office of the Inspector General, U.S. Department of Defense
The Department of Defense Inspector General (DoDIG) is an independent, objective agency that provides oversight related to the programs and operations of the United States Department of Defense (DoD). DoD IG was created in 1982 as an amendment t ...
*
Office of the Inspector General of the Department of State
The Office of Inspector General for the Department of State (OIG) is an independent office within the U.S. Department of State with a primary responsibility to prevent and detect waste, fraud, abuse, and mismanagement. OIG inspects more tha ...
*
SIGAR and the inspectors general for the U.S. Agency for International Development, Defense Department and Department of State have jointly developed and agreed to a strategic plan for oversight of the roughly $104 billion in U.S. funds appropriated for Afghanistan reconstruction.
See also
*
Afghanistan Papers
The ''Afghanistan Papers'' are a set of interviews relating to the war in Afghanistan undertaken by the United States military prepared by the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) that was published by ''The Washington ...
External links
Special Inspector General for AfghanistanOfficial website
Embassy of the United States Kabul, AfghanistanOfficial website
Appearances by John Sopkoon
C-SPAN
Cable-Satellite Public Affairs Network (C-SPAN ) is an American cable and satellite television network that was created in 1979 by the cable television industry as a nonprofit public service. It televises many proceedings of the United States ...
Recent quarterly reports
January 30, 2017 Quarterly Report to Congress
October 30, 2016 Quarterly Report to Congress
Recent reports
What We Need to Learn: Lessons from Twenty Years of Afghanistan ReconstructionCounternarcotics Police of Afghanistan: U.S. Assistance to Provincial Units Cannot Be Fully Tracked and Formal Capability Assessments Are Needed
Pol-i-Charkhi Prison: After 5 Years and $18.5 Million, Renovation Project Remains IncompleteSpecial Report: Poppy Cultivation in Afghanistan, 2012 and 2013Inquiry Letter: Communication Trucks*2015: "World's most expensive gas station"
References
{{Authority control
Afghanistan Reconstruction
S
2000s in Afghanistan
2010s in Afghanistan
Foreign aid to Afghanistan
Afghanistan–United States relations
Government agencies established in 2008
2008 establishments in Afghanistan
2008 establishments in the United States
War in Afghanistan (2001–2021)