A group of Afghanistan’s civil society organizations, political groups, academics and experts has unveiled a comprehensive roadmap proposing a UN-led political transition to replace Taliban rule with a legitimate, pluralistic and rights-based system of governance.
The proposal, known as the Comprehensive Composite Roadmap (CCR), was developed within the framework of the Cambridge Afghanistan Series, was developed within the framework of the annual Cambridge Afghanistan Series, a conference that has been held four times over the past four years at the University of Cambridge and hosted by the Mosaic Global Foundation. The Mosaic Foundation facilitates the formation of an “Independent Working Group,” whose mission is to collect roadmaps and proposals from political, civil society and military fronts and to combine them into a single “composite roadmap” aimed at fostering cohesion among different currents and shaping a shared vision.
The Comprehensive Composite Roadmap Working Group has gathered and integrated plans and roadmaps from the Vienna Process for a Democratic Afghanistan, the National Resistance Front of Afghanistan, the Afghanistan Freedom Front, the National Resistance Council for the Salvation of Afghanistan, the National Trust Movement, the Assembly of Coexistence and Liberation or “Mehr”, the Citizens Party of Afghanistan, the Afghanistan Federalists Assembly, the “Third Way Afghanistan” movement, Hezb-e Islami led by Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, the Republican Party, the National Congress Party of Afghanistan, the National Movement for Peace and Justice, the New Democratic Assembly of Afghanistan, as well as several political, civil and military movements operating inside the country, combining all of them into a single unified roadmap.
Its authors say the documents show roughly 90% overlap on core principles, forming what they describe as an “overlapping consensus” on the country’s future direction.
The roadmap is built around three non-negotiable values: that the people of Afghanistan must choose their government, that human rights must be respected, and that equality – including gender equality – must be guaranteed. The document is described as a “living framework” open to additional proposals that adhere to those principles.
The authors argue that Afghanistan’s current system under the Taliban lacks legitimacy and has entrenched cycles of violence, poverty and state failure. They describe Taliban rule as totalitarian, accusing the group of monopolising power through a rigid interpretation of Islamic law while dismantling social, political and legal institutions.
“The experience of Afghanistan shows that totalitarian governance not only fails to resolve crises but becomes a structural cause of them,” the document says.
At the centre of the proposal is the creation of a Political Convergence Framework (PCF), designed to unite anti-Taliban resistance groups, political parties, civil society organizations, women’s rights networks, religious scholars, youth movements and diaspora representatives into a single, cohesive political platform.
The PCF would serve as both a coordination body and the nucleus of a future legitimate political authority, tasked with preparing a transition roadmap, engaging regional and international actors, and representing Afghanistan in diplomatic forums.
The CCR outlines a three-track transformation process: a national dialogue among Afghans, regional peace dialogues to build consensus among neighbouring states, and an international process led by the United Nations. That process would culminate in a UN-mandated international conference to endorse and resource a transition plan.
The roadmap is anchored in seven pillars, including pluralism, institutional reform, power balancing, moderation, a new social contract and sustained engagement at national, regional and global levels.
Strategically, the document calls for simultaneous internal and external pressure on the Taliban. Internally, it advocates support for civil resistance, women’s movements and documentation of rights abuses. Externally, it urges coordinated diplomatic, legal and economic pressure, including sanctions and accountability mechanisms for alleged crimes against humanity and “gender apartheid”.
The CCR rejects engagement or concessions to terrorist groups, arguing that such approaches undermine peace and security. It also explicitly recognises women’s resistance and armed opposition to the Taliban as legitimate responses to repression.
Under the proposed transition, a preparatory committee would organise a constituent assembly to draft a new constitution, followed by the formation of a transitional government responsible for security, governance and the organization of free and inclusive elections.
The authors say the Taliban’s lack of international recognition, internal divisions and ties to transnational militant networks leave the current system fragile and vulnerable to sustained pressure combined with a credible political alternative.
Afghanistan has been ruled by the Taliban since August 2021. The Taliban have not commented on the roadmap.
