About the Ministry

History of the Ministry of Finance

For the first time in Afghanistan, taxes were given significance during Ahmad shah Baba’s reign. In the 1140 Solar Year, several government offices were established; including the Ministry of Finance which was called ‘Humayon Alla’ at the time. Abdullah Khan Popalzai was appointed as the first DewanBegi, then later on, the position was called ‘Mustafawi Almalik’. His authority was equal with today’s Finance Minister. Mustafawi Almalik enhanced the provincial financial system; monitored, and was responsible for the overall financial and accounting issues of the country.

In the Solar Year 1298, the modern era of Afghanistan began; government system was established, foreign and bureaucratic administrative systems were built, reforms began to improve the financial, economic, mystical and civil status. Meanwhile, defense and security structures, generalization of education and health, telecommunications, agriculture and irrigation reform and the establishment of factories, mining, business development, the establishment of central banks and other banks, public and private enterprises began.

Prior to the independence era, direct tax on land, mills, tobacco mill, syndicate licenses, food preservation tax, per capita, Jizya (Jizyais a per capita yearly taxation historically levied in the form of financial charge on permanent non-Muslim subjects of a state governed by Islamic law), forty-one taxes, and property taxes, livestock, Sukuk (Sukuk is the Arabic name for financial certificates, also commonly referred to as "sharia compliant" bonds); Wojohat as indirect tax formed the government finance sources. Other forms of taxes were unemployment tax, labor work, Ghanima )an Arabic word"الْغَنيمَة" meaning “spoils of war” levy and confiscation.

In addition to the customs tax, monopoly tax, depreciation tax,materials sales tax, and currency tax were also introduced as indirect tax.

The customs tax were obtained as Wojohat (funds). The tax was collected as cash and material.

Before 1289 Solar Year, government accounting was a simple book-keeping arranged in context and figures. There was no budget system at that time. In the year 1299,Osol-e-Daftari was established; it was not complicatedand was in accordance with the requirements of the time. Based on these principles, all accounts anddocuments were collected and sent to the capital until the year 1303. In 1303 Osol-e-Shahria replaced Osol-e-Daftari.According to Osol-e-Shahria, the documents and accounts were arranged on a monthly basis. In 1315, Gino Mancholi consulted the government to change the accounting system. Document arrangement was assigned to Executive Branches, and accounting departments were established.

After independent, the administrative structure of the country was modified. Monitoring institutions and ministries were established. One of these institutions was Ministry of Finance. Its branches were formed in the provinces as well. Financial branches at the province level were deputy governor (Naiebulhokomah) and provincial revenue department (Mosofyat). Tax were to be determined at the village level.

Since the year 1298, one hundred years ago, the Ministry of Finance have been in the Afghanistan government structure.

About the Ministry of Finance

The Ministry of Finance (MoF) manages and executes budget, collects taxes, organizes and controls public expenditure, and finally manages customs. Every government has to know the status of its revenues and expenditures, the management of its financial resources and to allocate them effectively.

Currently, a major share of the Afghanistan government budget is financed by international assistance. The Ministry of Finance, as the responsible body for public finance and expenditure, increasingly becomes more influential on coordinating and managing international assistance to Afghanistan, and convinces donors to channel more funds through the government treasury.
For the past few years, the Ministry of Finance has been trying to regulate its activities according to international rules and regulations. To achieve this goal,MoF established a recruitment section, as well as a Policy Design and Execution Unit, and has continually embarked on training and capacity building of its staff.
The Ministry’s aim is to manage financial affairs of the country through standard economic principles, so that Afghanistan becomes economically sustainable, secure, and self-sufficient, to ensure that public wealth is used in an accountable and transparent manner.

Vision

A stable and financially self-sufficient Afghanistan with a fiscally disciplined government and a Ministry that is accountable and responsive to the needs of people.

Mission:

To be an agent of change and expert in fiscal matters of the country, and to ensure that international standards are met for procurement and financial management.
As a central player in financial reforms, the Ministry of Finance works with the Central Bank of Afghanistan to ensure that the country's economic infrastructure works properly. The MoF has the additional responsibility to realign various functions to better support national development priorities.

Goals:

The MoF broad goals are:

• Mobilize revenue and manage government finances
• Support economic management and promote economic growth.
• Manage public wealth
• Promote good governance
• Best practice leader within the Afghan public sector
• The Ministry of Finance offers the following services to fellow citizens:
• Collect tax and non-tax revenue

The Ministry of Finance provides the following services to government departments:

• Prepare budget - for all government departments
• Budget allocation - for all government departments
• Payments - for all government departments
• Provide annual budget report - for all government departments
• Providing valuable paper - for all government departments
• Submit annual financial audit indicators to the Wolesi Jirga

Ministry of Finance is responsible for the following valuable documents:

• Passport
• Work permit
• Vehicle license plate number
• National ID cards (Tazkira)

Public Services

There are some internal services at the Ministry of Finance that support each other

• Procurement
• Transport
• Budget and payment
• Recruitment
• Development training

Main services

There are three pure and solid services provided by Ministry of Finance:

• Payment process
• Allocation process
• Budget preparation/Revenue

Payment process: For these services, the Ministry of Finance relies on other government departments to request M16 form from all ministries.

M16 form is given in return for a Cheque form.

Process: to provide this service, these steps are followed:
Reception desk

• Control office
• Filling M50 form
• Cheque printing office
• Control after being checked
• Distributing cheque and sending to the bank
• Check documents

Executions:  An indicator is applied when a percentage of payments is made within two business days to complete the control steps. This service is supported by the AFMIS database.

Allocation process

Description: allocation process in other ministries

The Ministry of Finance is dependent on the services other departments provide as budget allocation for other ministries. Form B27 is needed for that.

Process: the following is considered for this activity

• Distribute form B4
• Request for budget

Work Hours

In accordance with article 30 of labor law, work time is when an employee provides his or her physical or mental strength for the job.  Normally the average work hours cannot exceed 40 hours per week.