| Helping rebuild lives in Afghanistan
After 20 years of war and a prolonged drought, Afghan families in the Shomali region are rebuilding their lives through small-scale infrastructure rehabilitation and agricultural production activities.
Working with Chemonics, the International Rescue Committee, and four Afghan NGOs, farmers and laborers are helping renovate up to 250 miles of irrigation canals and mobilizing to plant wheat and orchard crops.
The Shomali Plain, north of Kabul, has a long tradition of intensive agricultural production, but irrigation systems and access roads were damaged by the protracted conflict or fell into disrepair as people fled the area.
“More than 60 percent of the buildings in the villages of Shomali were completely destroyed,” said Ray Baum, chief of party of the Afghanistan Quick Impact project. “As refugees started to return, they found devastation not only from the war years, but also from a five-year drought.”
Creating jobs and income for the returning refugees is a top priority for the Quick Impact project, a 12-month USAID-funded cooperative agreement.
As they work to rebuild the farm-to-market roads and community irrigation systems vital for agricultural productivity, laborers earn money to put food on the table and purchase household necessities and farming tools.
Up to 3,000 workers are building some 60 miles of roads. Though injecting cash into the community is key, Baum and his team also want to make sure the roads can withstand heavy use and harsh weather.
“Our goal is to make sure the roads we build will last for at least three years with minimal maintenance,” said Baum. “While other roads fell apart with the rains this year, those constructed with project assistance are still in good shape.”
This was made possible by sound engineering standards. Road surfaces are compacted so rain water rolls off into drainage ditches, minimizing erosion.
Chemonics is also building water diversion dams to irrigate some 20,000 hectares of land and introducing drip irrigation systems to support 56 family gardens and 5 commercial gardens growing fruit and vegetables.
Drip irrigation offers huge water savings compared to other methods and significantly cuts down on fungus and weeds created by excess water.
Family gardens are improving food security and empowering rural women who have limited work opportunities outside the household. Produce is sold in local markets, while the surplus goes to feed the family. Many of the crops are rich in vitamin A to reduce night blindness, a disease affecting pregnant and lactating women.
Other income-generating activities benefiting women include the sale of eggs, embroidery, and wool blankets. So far, some 600 out of 800 targeted families have received 10 chickens each through a poultry distribution program that includes vaccination, feed, and training.
Though it was not part of the original project design, the Quick Impact team also launched monthly women’s leadership seminars targeting junior professionals. Participants discuss obstacles facing women in the workplace, pressures from society and family, and professional growth opportunities.
“Two years ago, we weren’t supposed to have an opinion,” one participant said. “Now we are meeting to ask ourselves questions such as how we can contribute to the development of Afghanistan.”
The seminars started small, but have generated a tremendous response. “The only cost to the project is the tea and cookies we provide at these meetings,” said Baum, “yet the impact is greater than we ever anticipated.”
Another innovation introduced by Chemonics is price information boards set up at local bazaars. Community members that travel to nearby markets report back on the prices of produce there. The prices are recorded on the boards and updated as new information comes in. At harvest time, farmers use the boards to determine where to sell their produce for maximum profit.
“The concept is so simple and costs so little, but is badly needed” because there is no system to disseminate price information in Afghanistan, said Baum.
Next, the project is studying the possibility of establishing an experimental oilseed press and building linkages with Indian businesses interested in selling saris embroidered in Afghanistan.
The $2.9-million Quick Impact activity marks Chemonics’ fifth agricultural project in Afghanistan since 1975. By the time it ends in November, it is expected to directly benefit more than 100,000 families in the Shomali region.
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