Hutal (Afghanistan): In the US Army, Casey Thoreen is just a 30-year-old captain. Around here, he's known as the "King of Maiwand" district - testimony to the fact that without the young captain and a fat international wallet, local government here as in much of the insurgency-ravaged south could not function at all.
Setting up effective governments at the district level is key to US strategy. US officials hope that providing basic services will draw support away from the Taliban, especially here in the Islamist group's heartland of Kandahar province.
But in this dusty farming community 60 kilometres west of Kandahar, Thoreen has discovered that bolstering the authority of a district governor, who relies on him almost completely for financial resources and credibility, is a
delicate balancing act. He also knows the effort is unsustainable without greater support from the central Afghan government in Kabul.
"We are putting a big gamble on this," Thoreen said. "Any of this stuff we're doing here, not just at our level but the $ 800 billion we have spent so far in the country, is contingent on the government being effective."
For now, Thoreen and Maiwand's district governor, Obaidullah Bawari, are working with what they have - which isn't much.
The 49-year-old Bawari, who has occupied the post for a year, has no staff except his personal assistant and no government budget except for the roughly $ 400 monthly salary that he receives from Kabul. He is responsible for civilian government operations in the district, including water, power and schools, and he mediates disputes.
There are about 150 Afghan police deployed in Maiwand, but they report to both the chief of police in Kandahar City as well as the provincial governor.
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