The latest findings of the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR), released on Thursday, highlight how the U.S. military has spent $20 million on waste incinerators it never used.
The U.S. must learn from expensive mistakes it has made trying to rebuild Afghanistan — where it has spent more than anywhere else — and tighten up conditions for aid and oversight. Or it must risk losing much more, John Sopko, the head of the agency, said.
Mr. Sopko, a former prosecutor who took on the mafia in the U.S., has earned notoriety in Kabul and Washington for denouncing how much of the $107 billion the U.S. has spent rebuilding Afghanistan since 2001 has been frittered away.
Among the examples of woeful waste he has documented are a multi-million dollar project for solar-powered bus stops and more than $200 million on an unfinished road.
The U.S. government has to change the way it operates and keep a much closer eye on the money, Mr. Sopko said.
SIGAR was set up the U.S. congress in 2008 to provide independent oversight and audits of how U.S. funds are spent in Afghanistan.
