Diversification Strategies in Food Insecure High Altitude Villages of Badakhshan, AfghanistanS. Sumar1, N. Somani2, I. Kermali3 1 Focus Humanitarian Assistance Europe Foundation, The Aga Khan Development Network; London, United Kingdom. E-mail:
[email protected] 2 Focus Humanitarian Assistance Europe Foundation, The Aga Khan Development Network; London, United Kingdom. E-mail:
[email protected] 3 Cowater International Inc., Ottawa, Canada. E-mail:
[email protected] ABSTRACT: Afghanistan remains one of the most food insecure places in the world. An estimated 10 million people were considered food insecure in 2011. Our study conducted in 2009, profiles food security in the high altitude province of Badakhshan, where food production is limited by insufficient arable land, a shorter growing season, poor marketing and lack of inputs. A key recommendation of this study is that food security in all of the 195 villages assessed could be significantl y increased through greater income diversification. The villages were located between an altitude of 1272m and 3680m, with 52% assessed as being poor, and 48% considered food insecure in an average year. Livelihoods are concentrated predominantly on subsistence farming. During times of insecurity, families employ coping mechanisms including selling assets; migrating; purchasing food on credit; increasing child labour; and begging for food. These mechanisms in turn have a in/direct but negative impact on health especially among communities at high altitudes that are already vulnerable and fragile at best. While there have been improvements in food security in 2010, a precipitation deficit in 2011 shows that off-farm income diversification still represents the best opportunity for improving food security. Secure and regular incomes militate against shocks caused by natural hazards and the recurring cycles of food insecurity. The increase in incomes can also be reinvested back into renewing agricultural assets and providing new technologies, leading to improved yields, productivity and sustainability. Policies necessary to increase access to off-farm employment include greater education and capacity development; increasing microfinance facilities; business training; price regulation; and improving market systems. Keywords: Food security, Natural and man-made disasters, livelihoods, poverty, high altitude communities 1. INTRODUCTION Afghanistan has endured decades of political instability, protracted conflict and natural disasters, all of which have contributed to food insecurity in the country. Current estimates from the World Food Programme, suggest that in 2011 some10 million people are food insecure (World Food Programme, News, 2011, World Food Programme, 2011). Badakhshan is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan. It is located in the north-east of the country, between the Hindu Kush and the Amu Darya. It is primarily bordered by Tajikistan to the north and east. To the east of the province, the Wakhan Corridor extends above northern Pakistan's Chitral and Northern Areas to a border with China. The province has a total area of 44,060 km², most of which is occupied by the Hindu Kush and Pamir mountain ranges. Badakhshan is one of the most populated province of Afghanistan with 2 million inhabitants. Historically, the province has always been food insecure even during peace times and prior to the 1980s, when the local agriculture production only met 50% of needs. The relatively recent food (price) crisis of 2008-2009 has further increased vulnerability among the population among other factors. 2.0 METHODOLOGY Our study conducted in 2009, profiles food security in the high altitude regions of Badakhshan where food production is limited by insufficient arable land, extreme winters, a shorter growing season, poor marketing and lack of inputs. The study was conducted over a period of ten months starting in mid-June, 2009. Teams of trained assessors, accompanied by community volunteers, visited 195 villages and interviewed key informants including members of the village councils, officials of the local and district governmental officials and members of the civil society organisations. Information collected included data on population demography, livelihoods, state of food security, causes of food insecurity, coping with food insecurity, and strategies to manage food insecurity. A semi-structured assessment form was designed, translated into Dari and validated to facilitate use at the field level. 3.0 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION The survey focused on 195 villages at high attitudes, and examined both agro-ecological (e.g. altitude, wheat yields) and socio-economic factors (e.g. market access, infrastructure, and livelihoods). Many of the 195 villages surveyed were found to be food insecure despite various efforts to rehabilitate agricultural systems, improve livelihoods and militate against disaster. Insufficient support, infrastructure, and access to markets; frequent shocks such as floods, landslides, and droughts; demands on natural resources, recent (sharp) increases in the price of food, fuel and transportation have all contributed to increasing the vulnerability of these rural populations. This is further borne out by a recent World Bank Survey which indicates that almost 70% of the local population is calorie deficient and 61% are considered to be in poverty (World Bank, 2011, p.1). International trade links are barely developed outside of narcotics, despite sharing international borders with Pakistan, Tajikistan, and China. Legal trade exists only with Tajikistan across two border posts, both of which are difficult to access (especially in winter). There is no major electricity grid and the first paved main road (linking it to neighbouring Takhar) came to the province in 2010. Badakhshan’s inaccessibility and lack of available agricultural land has resulted in a slow and generally underdeveloped local economy. The study reveals a population locked into a cycle of food insecurity with very few avenues of escape. The increased incidence of natural disaster coupled with a dependency on subsistence farming has meant that Badakhshan is a region blighted by poverty and very low living standards. 3.1. Altitude Badakhshan province is largely mountainous (reaching as far up as 7485 m), allowing for little agriculture except animal husbandry usually of sheep and goats. The population surveyed is mostly settled in higher altitude areas: 49% at 2,500 to 3,000m range followed by 24% at 2,000 to 2,500m range. 14% of the villages are at less than 2,000m while 13% are at more than 3000m (Table 1). Villages located above 2,000 m which depend mostly on subsistence farming for food are generally food insecure and characterised by both low food consumption and lack of dietary diversity. They also have relatively higher rates of maternal and child mortality. These mountainous areas have only one crop per year and there is very little arable land for cultivation. Many communities in these areas are geographically isolated because of poor or no roads and they have little or no access to seasonal food markets or health facilities. The traditional livelihood system in these areas is primarily livestock husbandry which is negatively affected as a result of widespread coping mechanisms coupled with by poor markets. Table 1: Altitude of surveyed villages Districts Arghanj Khaw Darayem Ishkashim Jurm Kuran Wa Munjan Maimai Nusai Shughnan Shukai Wakshan Warduj Yomgan Zebak Overall Villages 13 5 34 3 17 15 14 14 6 42 3 7 22 195 27 14% 47 24% 1 7 8 3 6 4 2 4 20 1 2 20 96 49% 2 25 13% 18 2 <2,000m 2,000-2,500m 9 5 6 1 1 5 1 9 14 3 5 2 2 26 2 2,500-3000m 3 >3,000m 1 3.2 Overall Living Conditions Villages were scored according to five levels: Very poor, poor, sufficient, good and very good. 102 villages were below normal (poor or very poor), 33 villages were normal (sufficient), and the remaining 60 villages above normal (good or very good). While, the data was encouraging in identifying a significant number of villages above normal, that fact that the majority were below normal, indicates a worrying trend. In addition, the political and geographic instability in the region means that the 33 villages considered normal remain vulnerable, with a high risk of deterioration. 3.3 Livelihoods Diversity of income streams outside of the agricultural sector is a key component to ensuring food security. The main source of on-farm income in the villages is crop production (58%) and livestock (30%); followed by fruit production (7%) and forestry (5%). Only 6.5% of the total population is employed in the off-farm sector. With sufficient infrastructure and investment it is clear that there exists a vast labour pool which can be channelled into productive industries. Overall, about 52% of off-farm employment is in the work force (labourers), followed by government service – mainly education department (28%), military (11%), private service; NGOs (5%), with business/shopkeepers at 4%. 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 0% Crop Production Livestock Fruit Production Forestry Figure 1: Livelihoods in surveyed districts 3.4. Food Security Conditions Food secure villages were scored either as normal or borderline, and food insecure villages were scored either as insecure or very insecure, depending on the severity of the conditions in that year. In an average year, 82 villages are borderline, 17 are secure and 96 are insecure. The number of very insecure villages in 2008 increased from 32 in an average year to 56 compared to 54 expected in the bad year. The average annual food gap duration in the villages is 58 days, and the average number of households within a village which are food insecure is 80%. In a bad year, the percentage of food insecure households’ is higher than 90% in all areas and is 100% in 10 of the 13 districts. In the face of such conditions, families employ various (damaging) coping mechanisms; respondents indicated that they have on different occasions resorted to selling assets, migrating, purchasing food on credit, increasing child labour, and begging. 3.5. Overall Causes of Food Insecurity The villages surveyed identified a number of different causes of food security. In 186 villages, lack of agricultural inputs is the main cause of food insecurity followed by damage from hazards (138 villages, poor markets (133) and lack of employment (118). The effects of natural disasters are exacerbated by the lack of infrastructure and the isolation of villages strung out along high mountain valleys, causing disruption to food production. Addiction to drugs as a cause of food insecurity was an important factor while other causes included access, economic, land, crop and livestock pests and diseases; weather, and water availability. 3.6 Wheat Yields and Prices Yield of irrigated wheat is a good indicator of food productivity in these areas. Overall, the 2008 average yield in the villages (742 Kg/ha) was lower compared to 907 Kg/ha in 2007 and 888 Kg/ha in 2006. The 2008 rain-fed wheat yield (408 Kg/ha) was on average 85% of the 2007 yield (481 Kg/ha) and 70% of the 2006 yield (587 Kg/ha). On average, the rain fed yield is 47% of the irrigated wheat yields; It was 34% in 2006, 47% in 2007 and 45% in 2008. In 2011, the combination of falling yield in both rain-fed, and irrigated lands in Badakhshan, coupled with a decrease the respective geographical area available for farming has seen a significant wheat deficit arise (-86100 metric tons). Wheat prices have significantly risen in 2011 also, with prices of wheat and wheat flour up 79% on the year before. The July 2011 price of all cereals together increased by 60 percent above pre-food price crises (Jan-Oct 2007). (FEWS, 2011) 4.0 CONCLUSION: KEY RECOMMENDATIONS On basis of information collected from the food security assessment and from discussions with community leaders, authorities and officials of a number of civil society institutions, the following inter-linked measures were recommended for responding to the repeated cycles of food crisis: Promoting Community Food Security activities, empowering the Community Development Councils (CDCs), developing a comprehensive food insecurity surveillance and response mechanism, designation of an in-house food security coordinator, developing community owned food stockpiles, introducing agriculture diversification, agro-enterprises and value added agriculture to reduce the food gap; improving access to appropriate agricultural inputs, providing cash transfers to the most vulnerable during food crisis, implementing disaster mitigation projects, improving nutrition and hygiene, and strengthening links with National food security programs. Two further recommendations also emerge from the study: 1. Recognition that food distribution based programmes do not represent the best method of achieving food security. Income-generating programs are generally a more efficient such as the Afghan National Emergency Employment Programme (NEEP) and micro-finance programs. Regular wage incomes smooth consumption patterns therefore also ensuring health and education security. These incomes can also be reinvested back to purchasing agricultural inputs thereby ensuring a diversity of incomes and food sources within a single household. Climate change represents a major threat to food security in Afghanistan, and in particular mountainous areas such Badakhshan where natural hazards are prevalent. An approach which not only emphasises food security, but also outlines a path to food sovereignty should be considered. National programmes which engage locally governing CDCs are best situated to tackle this issue successfully. Sustainable food production, resolving disputes related to land tenure, and stewardship of natural resources needs to be encouraged. Water conservation, food harvesting techniques based on indigenous knowledge and low tech construction methods need to be intensified through basic technology transfer and extension work by agricultural aid agencies. Drought-resistant high market value crops should be identified and tested for long-term productivity. 2. In conclusion, only an integrated (and adaptive) approach will ensure a sustainable food security future in Afghan Badakhshan with improved health outcomes, especially among high attitude vulnerable communities against a background of climate change, disasters, land degradation and development challenges. 5.0 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Contributions made by the staff of Focus Humanitarian Assistance, Afghanistan especially Noor Kashani and Hesamuddin Hashuri, are acknowledged. 6.0 REFERENCES Anon. 2011, Afghanistan - Drought impact Emergency Food Security Assessment, World Food Programme, [online], Available at: <http://documents.wfp.org/stellent/groups/public/documents/ena/wfp243035.pdf> [Accessed 13 January 2012] Anon, 2011, Afghanistan Food Security Outlook, Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS), [online], Available at: <http://www.fews.net/docs/Publications/Afghanistan_OL_2011_01.pdf> [Accessed 13 January 2012] Anon, 2011, Afghanistan, World Bank Provincial Briefs, [online] Available at: <http://siteresources.worldbank.org/AFGHANISTANEXTN/Resources/305984-1297184305854/ProvBriefsEnglish.pdf > [Accessed 13 January 2012] Anon, 2011, UN says Afghanistan drought means up to 10 million people will need food aid this fall, WFP News, [online], Available at: <http://www.wfp.org/content/un-says-afghanistan-drought-means-10-million-people-will-need-food-aid-fall> [Accessed 13 January 2012]