Small contractors that focus on the civilian tools of national security, such as diplomacy and law enforcement rather than weapons development, have found a valuable niche in recent years, growing exponentially as the Pentagon deployed these skills in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Working closely with public diplomacy is a big part of the job, Raval said. He said that many of their projects are funded through public diplomacy grants and some of them allow Afghans to travel to America for eight-to 10-week seminars to learn skills such as business development, and upon return they are able to pass on what they have learned to their fellow Afghans.