Characterization by asset ownership

63 FOOD SECURITY Figure 7.2: Population, by level of food security, and by residence, season in percentages 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40 S p ri n g S u m m e r A u tu m n W in te r S p ri n g S u m m e r S p ri n g S u m m e r A u tu m n W in te r S p ri n g S u m m e r W in te r S p ri n g S u m m e r S p ri n g S u m m e r A u tu m n W in te r S p ri n g S u m m e r 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 2011 2012 Urba n Rura l Kuchi Na tiona l 38 30 32 33 35 32 21 18 26 28 31 29 28 16 19 27 22 27 29 32 28

7.6.2 Harvest and lean season’s differences

The main harvest period is generally between May and July for main staples including wheat, maize and barley crops. The post-harvest period is usually from August to mid-December, and pre-harvest the lean season is generally from mid-December to April. However, there is considerable variation in these seasons across the country see also Annex VII. Considering these three distinct periods of the harvest, post-harvest and lean season there is a general decrease in the proportion of food-insecure people between the lean season and the harvest period across all regions, except in Central Highlands where the proportion increased from 22 percent to 36 percent in 2011 Table 7.6. Based on the 2011 seasonal trend, the percentage of food-insecure people increased between the harvest and post-harvest periods in all regions, except the South-west. This increased food insecurity was likely related to the poorer crops in 2011 and diminished cereal stocks due to the severe 2011 drought. An improved situation is reported for the period between the lean season and harvest, as well as between the harvest and post-harvest periods in 2012, when the proportion of food-insecure people consistently decreased in all regions. The above indings indicate that the critical period of food insecurity usually occurs during the lean season that generally lasts from mid-December to April in most parts of the country, and can extend to July in Badakhshan and the provinces of the Central Highlands. A comparison across population groups shows a similar trend, with the largest proportion of people facing food insecurity during the lean season, except in rural areas in 2011 when the rate remained the same as for the harvest period that same year, which is probably due to the good 2010 harvest. In urban areas in 2012, the proportion of population facing food insecurity increased from 32 percent during the lean season to 37 percent at harvest time, and then reduced to 21 percent in post-harvest period. Since urban food insecurity is affected not only by the amount of harvested crop available in the urban markets, but also by other market and economic factors, the impact of food insecurity seems to go beyond seasonal factors.