The four Afghan factions holding talks in Bonn, Germany have reached agreement on a United Nations blueprint for rebuilding the country’s political system.

The deal came early on yesterday morning after the Northern Alliance, the largest delegation, finally submitted alist of its candidates for a 29-member interim administration to rule Afghanistan.

The next step, expected to begin immediately, will be to choose which factions get which jobs.

The interim administration will rule for six months until a commission is formed to convene a Loya Jirga, ortraditional grand assembly. The assembly would then elect a transitional government to rule for about two yearsuntil a constitution was drawn up and elections were held.

Under intense international pressure, the interim administration is expected to include at least one woman as one ofthe five deputy Prime Ministers, and several other women as ministers.

While talks continue in Bonn, talks of a different sort are underway in Brussels, Belgium where the first Afghanwomen’s summit is being held. 50 Afghan women representing a wide range of ethnic and religious groups and politicalviews have gathered, supported by Women’s rights groups from around the world. They are working to forge unifieddemands on the need for women’s equality and for their full participation in conflict resolution efforts and in theformation of a future Afghan government.

Guest:

• Zieba Shorish Shamley, Women’s Alliance for Peace and Human Rights in Afghanistan.