An Afghan private security man, part of a private security company called Arya patrols on containers around their base in Adraskan, Herat. (AP Photo/Hoshang Hashimi)

Published: Feb 10, 2012 10:39 Updated: Feb 10, 2012 18:14

KABUL, Afghanistan: The push by Afghanistan’s president to nationalize legions of private security guards before the end of March is encouraging corruption and jeopardizing multibillion-dollar aid projects, according to companies trying to make the switch.

President Hamid Karzai has railed for years against the large number of guns-for-hire in Afghanistan, saying private security companies skirt the law and risk becoming militias. He ordered them abolished in 2009 and eventually set March 20 of this year as the deadline for everyone except NATO and diplomatic missions to switch to government-provided security.

Afghan officials are rushing to meet the cutoff with the help of NATO advisers. But with fewer than six weeks to go, it’s likely that many components will still be missing on March 20. And even once everything falls into place, higher costs and issues of authority over the government guards will remain.

The change imperils billions of dollars of aid flowing into Afghanistan, particularly from the United States. In a country beset by insurgent attacks and suicide bombings, the private development companies that implement most of the US aid agency’s programs employ private guards to protect compounds, serve as armed escorts and guard construction sites.

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