[The drought has led to the displacement of thousands of people this spring, adding to the nearly two million who have been forced from their homes in recent years, largely because of violence.]
By Mujib Mashal
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Afghan
women and children in Jalalabad waiting last week to receive food donated
by
a charity. The drought has led to the displacement of thousands of people this
spring.CreditNoorullah
Shirzada/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images
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KABUL,
Afghanistan — Afghanistan,
already torn by decades of intensifying violence, is grappling with a drought
in two-thirds of the country that could lead to severe food shortages for up to
two million more people, the United Nations has warned.
The United Nations humanitarian coordinator
in Afghanistan said in a report released last week that a “precipitation
deficit” of 70 percent in most parts of the country had affected winter
harvests, and resulted in grim prospects for the spring and summer.
Many farmers have seen their seeds dry out or
have delayed planting crops, and there is little or no feed for livestock on
pasturelands.
The drought has led to the displacement of
thousands of people this spring, adding to the nearly two million who have been
forced from their homes in recent years, largely because of violence.
“In the 20 provinces most affected by the
drought, nearly 15 million people rely on farming, livestock or labor
opportunities in agriculture,” the United Nations report said.
Toby Lanzer, the organization’s humanitarian
coordinator in Afghanistan, said an urgent appeal had been made to donor
countries to prevent what he said would be “a situation of untenable hunger” in
six months. In a country that relies heavily on bread, a shortage of 2.5
million tons of wheat is expected this year.
Mr. Lanzer said the United Nations was asking
for an additional $115 million, on top of an appeal for humanitarian assistance
of $430 million made earlier in the year, to provide food, fodder for cattle
and other assistance. But donors face numerous requests for assistance around
the world, and the initial request for $430 million has been fulfilled by only
28 percent so far.
“Engage now, prevent a catastrophe, or pay
much much more in six months,” Mr. Lanzer said he had been telling potential
donor countries. “The stakes are very high for Afghanistan on the drought.”
The drought comes as violence has been
escalating in large parts of the country, with Taliban insurgents intensifying
attacks. Officials often report attacks or military operations in as many as 20
of the 34 provinces. The Afghan government’s ability to respond to this latest
crisis remains in doubt, as the leadership faces numerous security concerns and
is plagued by political infighting.
Javid Faisal, a spokesman for the Afghan
government’s chief executive, said the leadership was taking concerns about the
drought “as seriously as the security situation.” Tens of thousands of tons of
wheat have been sent to areas expected to be most affected, he said, and money
has been earmarked to provide fodder for livestock.
Widespread violence has increased the
drought’s impact, resulting in restricted access to markets for many poor
farmers, the United Nations report said. In Uruzgan Province, farmers have been
cut off from the market in the provincial capital, Tirin Kot, because of
fighting. In Helmand, where insurgents control or influence most of the
territory, farmers need special permission to bring their goods to markets in
areas under government control.
Ahmad Shah Khairi, the head of the Helmand
agriculture department, said the province had only 12 millimeters, or less than
half an inch, of rain all year. “We need 280 to 300 millimeters for a fertile
year,” he said.
That local farmers prioritize the growth of
lucrative poppies over wheat and other cereal crops made the food shortage even
worse, he continued.
“We have distributed improved seeds to 2,000
families and have launched general awareness and built chicken farms,” Mr.
Khairi said. “But our access is limited due to the constant fighting, which
leaves most of the population in need of urgent assistance.”
In the southwestern province of Nimroz,
officials expect the drought to affect 80 percent of the spring harvest, and
the summer harvest to be totally devastated.
The province has two main rivers flowing
through it, noted Mohammad Akbar Sharifi, the acting director of agriculture of
Nimroz, but one, the Khasrod, went dry. Whereas farmers cultivated 33,000
hectares, or 81,500 acres, of land last spring, he said, only 1,200 hectares
were farmed this year.
In the northwestern province of Badghis,
where the population of about 700,000 is dependent on agriculture, officials
reported a 60 percent decrease in the wheat harvest. The government plans to
distribute more than 3,000 tons of wheat in the coming days, and to keep about
2,000 tons for emergencies.
“Hundreds of animals have died of drought in
recent months,” said Abdul Aziz Halimayr of the province’s agriculture
department.
With pasturelands dried up in the northeast
of the country, an estimated 1.5 million goats and sheep have been struggling
to find food, the United Nations report said. In Kunduz, officials said the
drought had forced many farmers to move their animals to the neighboring
province of Badakhshan.
“Some of the animals have died because of the
drought,” said Mohammed Munir Niazi, the head of agriculture in Kunduz, “some
were weak and were lost in the process of transporting them.”
Follow Mujib Mashal on Twitter: @MujMash.
Reporting was contributed by Jawad Sukhanyar
and Fahim Abed from Kabul, Afghanistan; Taimoor Shah from Kandahar,
Afghanistan; and Najim Rahim from Mazar-e-Sharif, Afghanistan.
