Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government how many female Afghan civil society representatives they plan to sponsor as participants in the Afghanistan Development Conference to be co-hosted by the United Kingdom in November.

The role of women in determining the future of Afghanistan will be crucial. Therefore female civil society participation in the conference will be essential and something the UK will expect as a co-host. We expect to sponsor a number of civil society representatives – both male and female - to attend. However, the conference format and therefore number of attendees can only be confirmed once a new Afghan Government is in place.