Military Bankers

Economic development is not the primary field of expertise of the military. However, sustainable growth and security are interrelated and interdependent. Without sustainable economic growth, stability will be hard to achieve. Although the traditional assumption is that security should precede development, the central theme in this thesis is that economic development and the development of capacity for a banking system should start as soon as possible. This thesis therefore examined two case studies in Kosovo and Afghanistan to determine whether there is a viable role the military can play in re-establishing a banking system in a country undergoing stabilization and reconstruction. Both situations, as well as historical cases, shows that the role of the military is limited to providing logistical or security support for key infrastructure and personnel. The study also demonstrates that the military should be empowered with financial knowledge that is needed to assess the situation, shape the development of the banking system and synchronize military efforts with activities of other financial and development-focused organizations.