The evaluation committee of counter corruption department says that nearly 600 posts are vacant in the ministry of mines and petroleum for three years. The committee said on Tuesday, November 17, 2020 that 31 key posts in the ministry are run by caretakers. The committee’s findings say that the ministry of mines and petroleum has managed to implement 91 recommendations offered by them, but no changes has been seen in the employment procedure there.(20201117)

A new presidential decree shows that President Ashraf Ghani Ahmadzai has made decision made about the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum.

Based on the president's decree, parts of the Ministry of Mines, including a deputy minister’s office, are set to become independent directorates.(20200408) 

“The government is trying to make all the country’s resources exclusive to the Presidential Palace,” said Abdul Qadir Jelani, an economic expert.

Under the decree, the Ministry of Mines will play a policy-making role, and the ministry's responsibilities in the field of mining contracts and revenues will be handed over to the Independent Mines Development Authority.

1. Former Ministers of Mines of Mines and Petroleum (MoMP) (and Industries)
Muhammad Alam Razim Interim Government, Northern Alliance.
Mir Moh. Sediq (2004-2005)
Eng. Ibrahim Adil (200603).
Wahidullah Shahrani stepped down because of Presidential Election 2014 (20090103-20131000),
Mohammad Akbar Barakzai (20131028-20140930)
Mohammad Akbar Barakzai acting Minister (20141001)
acting Minister of Mines and Petroleum Mir Ahmad Jawid Sadat (20141209)
Daud Shah Saba (20150127-20160328 resigned)
Acting minister of Mines and Petroleum Mrs. Ghazal Habib Ghazal Habibyar Safi Ghezal Habib Yar Safi  (20160416, 20160505, 20160824)
Nomininated Mrs. Nargis Nehan ( 20170327, 20171204 rejected and acting 20180103) resigned (20191025)
Enayatullah Momand (20191026, 20200103, 20200402)
Harun Chakhansuri (20200611) nominated and acting. confirmed (20201130)

Deputy Ministers of Mines:
Eng. Muhammad Akram Ghayasi Ghiasi (20100104)
Eng. Abdul Qudoos Hamidi (20100100, 20150514)
Mrs. Ghezal Habib Yar Safi Ghazal Habibyar-Safi (2016)
Deputy Minister for Financial and Administrative Affairs: Abdul Jamil Hares  Eng Abdul Jamil Haris (20140811)
Deputy Minister for Mine Affairs: Eng. Naseer Ahmand Durani (20140930)
Ibrahim Azhar, Deputy Minister of the MoMP (20150524)
Deputy Minister for Policy and Programs:
Mir Ahmed Javid Sadat, Ahmad Jawed Sadat (20160824, 20170404)
Technical Deputy Minister Mines and Petroleum
Enayatullah Momand (2018)
Chief of Staff of the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum (MoMP)
Shafiqullah Shahrani (20150202)
Speaker Spokesman Spokesperson Ministry of Mines and Industries:
Mohammad Rafee Sediq Mohammad Sediqi Rafi Sediq, former TOLO journalist  (20141005, 20150211)
Muhayuddin Noori (20160718)
Zabihullah Sarwari (20170420)

Abdul Qadeer Mutfi, Abdul Qadir Mutfa (20180222, 20190227, 20201214)
 

MEC report lists reasons behind corruption in MoMP

The Independent Joint Anti-Corruption Monitoring and Evaluation Committee (MEC) in a report has listed ‘a defiant anti-corruption campaign’, political interferences, foreign meddling as main reasons behind corruption vulnerabilities at the Ministry of Mining and Petroleum (MoMP).

In addition, the MEC findings identify weak handling of contracts and political influence in decision making process among factors contributing to corruption in the ministry.

The MEC report says illegal mining, inadequate salaries, weak mining audit, revenue collection, illegal interference of local officials in revenue collection and their involvement in illegal mining are other problems of the ministry.

Making the report, the MEC interviewed 266 experts and evaluated 66 contracts from October 2017 till July 2018 in Kabul, Parwan, Panjshir, Balkh, Nangarhar, Badakhshah, Samangan, Herat and Kandahar provinces.

MEC head Bari Salam, while unveiling the results of the research, said the MoMP had also made some achievements like hiring of employees through the Independent Civil Services and Administrative Reform Commission (ICSARC), signing some Memoranda of Understanding (MoU) with concerned government institutions for greater cooperation.

However, he said the mining ministry still faced many issues such as lack of understanding between the authorities concerned, lack of capacity within the ministry and its provincial branches.

Vulnerabilities and danger of corruption

Bari Salam said weaknesses in the anti-corruption system, poor governance, unsatisfaroy connectivity of the ministry with provinces, political influence in decision making and some other areas were vulnerable to corruption in the ministry.

He said the MEC during its report refrained from naming corrupt individuals and only focused on reasons behind the corruption and its vulnerabilities.

Lapses within the contract process and illegal mining

The MEC report says many lapses take place in the process of warding mining contracts and these lapses cause corruption.

Bari Salaam said many procedures of contracts remained unexplained and the required scrutiny did not take place. Before awarding contracts, all necessary documents of the company concerned should be scrutinized carefully, he said.

He said the MEC findings showed the process of contract provision was lengthy and weak and this problem allowed external interferences in the process.

He said event today most of the illegal mining involved powerful individuals, members of Parliament, illegal armed groups and the Taliban on a large scale.

Weak internal audit

The MEC report said internal audit did not happen on a high standard and auditors were badly affected by personal benefits, gifts and other presents offered to them by the institutions being audited.

Salaam said the mining ministry’s audit had been weak and not up to standard and the auditors were bribe-fed.  He said the ministry has nine auditors and of them two would be retiring.

Revenue Collection

The MEC report says local officials and different government institutions without any legal authority were involved in revenue collection of the mining ministry or involved in illegal mining.

 “No report about available deposits, their exact rates and average production is available and there is no monitoring of the production, this is why the revenue could not be properly collected,” he said.

Low salaries and meddling in hiring process

The MEC report say low salaries of employees force them to misuse their authorities in personal interest.

(20181210)

2. Previous Functions:
Program Officer "Finance", Afghanistan Rural Enterprise Development Project, Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (200801-200805)
Research Services Manager, Afghanistan Rural Enterprise Development Project, Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (200805-200909)
Head of Aid Coordination, Ministry of Public Health (201301-201304)
Rural Development Specialist, The World Bank (201304-201511)
Spokesman to the President of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (20160200)
Presidential administrative affairs deputy, Deputy Chief of Staff for Strategic Communications and Media (20170427, 20180101)
Head Deputy office on governance and programs under the presidential office’s structure (20190701)
Deputy Minister for Political affairs and Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs (20200121, 20200404)
Minister of Mines and Petroleum (20200611) nominated and acting, confirmed (20201130)

3. Biodata: 

Mohammad Haroon Chakhansoori hails from Nimruz Province and was born in 1980. He was awarded BBA Management, at Kardan University Kabul, Afghanistan (2006 – 2010) and Master of Public Administration (MPA), Public Administration at The University of Sydney, Australia (2011 – 2013) Chakhansuri has a Master of Public Administration degree from Sydney University, Australia.

In late 2015 Chakhansuri joined the Office of the President of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan as Special Assistant to the President. In the same year, he was promoted as the President’s Chief of Protocol. He also served as a Spokesperson to the President of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan before being appointed as Deputy Chief of Staff for Coordination of State Affairs. In 2017, he was appointed as Deputy Chief of Staff and Spokesperson to the President of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and served for two years.  In 2019. Chakhansuri was appointed as Deputy Chief of Staff - Governance and Programs at the Office of the President of Islamic Republic of Afghanistan.

He was appointed as Deputy Foreign Minister – Political Affairs and Acting Minister of Foreign Affairs, Islamic Republic of Afghanistan in January 2020.

Haroon Chakhansuri was confirmed as minister of Mines and Petroleum with 154 votes. (20201130)

He is married and father of four kids.

He speaks Pashtu, Dari, Baluchi, Urdu and English.