Drought and hunger hit Afghanistan hard

|PIC1|Drought-stricken and internally displaced, many Afghans can’t even be sure of one good meal a day for themselves and their family, says Church World Service.

"Life continues to be difficult for all Afghans, but the tens of thousands of displaced Afghans and returnees from Pakistan and Iran are particularly at risk," says CWS Asia and Pacific Region Coordinator Marvin Parvez, who has also directed the CWS Pakistan/Afghanistan programme.

The most severe drought in a decade has only deepened the Afghanistan's food crisis. Oxfam International estimated last autumn that five million people in Afghanistan would face severe food shortages this winter.

In response to the dire needs, the US-based Church World Service will provide immediate assistance to the most vulnerable in three hard-hit provinces – Nangarhar, Takhar, and Laghman.

In these areas, drought has severely affected the food security and there has been an influx of returnees from neighboring countries, resulting in increased demand for food.

The agency is assisting in building a greater and sustainable food production, increasing the efficiency of existing irrigation systems, providing clean water for families, and increasing communities’ resilience by strengthening livelihoods.

CWS is also helping some 1,300 farmers in Nangarhar and Takhar who are preparing for next winter’s cropping this month. CWS is providing educational training, agricultural inputs to boost climate-adapted agricultural production, and rehabilitation of irrigation systems for increased efficiency and to lessen damage from future droughts.

To 500 farmers, CWS teams are supplying 55,000 pounds (25 metric tons) of seeds and 110,000 pounds (50 metric tons) of fertilisers and pesticides. The agency is also providing a clean water supply for 1,000 families, and constructing or drilling 40 water supply wells.

Another 300 people in these regions are participating in “food for work” projects constructing shelter for their families, while about 200 families are receiving free food packages.

According to the United Nations, an estimated 4.4 billion pounds (2.2 million tons) of cereals need to be imported to the country this year to meet basic needs. About three billion pounds of cereals are expected to be imported commercially, but the rest will need to be supplied by international donors, the agency said.