Reasons for not cultivating land
5.6 Conclusions
Agricultural activities are the main livelihood strategies for the Afghan population, as 55 percent of households are engaged in farming and 68 percent have any type of livestock. However, productivity in the agricultural sector is relatively low, as for instance reflected by the 37 percent contribution of agriculture to the GDP. Frequently, farming households have access to only small areas of land, and provision of water is cited as a main problem for both irrigated and rain-fed cultivation. The rehabilitation of irrigation systems is also the main priority for community development according to the male Shuras interviewed in the NRVA survey. The relatively low rate of mechanized traction in farming is another factor in the low productivity, and so is the significant proportion of farming households that is not using fertilizers 38 percent and the large proportion that is not reached by agricultural extension services 90 percent for information on agricultural production and 85 percent for veterinary services. Finally, remoteness of communities and access to markets are impeding factors for the development of the agricultural sector. Strategies that would benefit the agricultural sector include improvement of irrigation systems, cultivation of drought- resistant crops, provision of credits to farmers, soil fertility increase through proper crop rotations andor the use of fertilizers, increased agriculture awareness through media and extension services, and all-weather road construction. With regard to the latter, significant development is reported, as more than half of the households mention that road conditions have improved over the three years preceding the NRVA 20078. Another positive development is that the share of households with access to land has increased in the period between the 2005 and 20078 NRVAs. In a wider perspective, increased education and literacy would provide farmers and livestock owners with better knowledge and access to relevant information. Also, decline in fertility would help to reduce the ever-increasing pressure on the limited available arable land in Afghanistan. On a separate note, it should be mentioned that 10 percent of Afghan households engaged in agricultural activities produce opium, a figure which likely is a considerable under-estimation. Six provinces account for almost all reports on opium production, with Urozgan and Helmand having the highest proportion of households producing opium 82 and 67 percent, respectively.Parts
» MDG Indicators AFG 2007 NRVA report
» – Population structure and change 10 – Labour force characteristics 25
» – The agricultural sector 40 – Poverty incidence and poverty profiling 54
» - Education 65 - Health 73 Other Indicators
» Stakeholder involvement and questionnaire design
» Sampling design NRVA 20078 methodology
» Questionnaire contents and interviews
» Comparability of NRVA 20078 with previous rounds
» Data limitations NRVA 20078 methodology
» Second quarter December 2007-February 2008
» Third quarter March-May 2008 d. Fourth quarter June - August 2008
» Introduction - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» General population characteristics Population structure and distribution
» Geographic distribution Population structure and distribution
» Household structure Household structure and marriage patterns
» Marriage patterns Household structure and marriage patterns
» Total Fertility Rate Fertility and mortality
» Child mortality estimates Fertility and mortality
» General migration In-migration Migration
» Security and returnees Migration
» Conclusions - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Labour force participation Labour force, employment and unemployment
» Employment and unemployment Conceptualisation of employment and unemployment
» Status in employment Characteristics of employment
» Industry and occupation Characteristics of employment
» Introduction Children and work
» Seasonal migration Labour migration
» Irrigated land Access to land
» Rain-fed land Access to land
» Crop production Agricultural production
» Opium production Agricultural production
» Introduction Irrigated land in summer
» Rain-fed land - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Traction for cultivating land
» Use of fertilizers and pesticides
» Reasons for not cultivating land
» Community accessibility Rain-fed land
» Conceptualization of poverty Poverty across space and time
» Equality in consumption expenditure
» Household size and composition
» Characteristics of the head of household
» Characteristics of household members
» Introduction Literacy - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Literacy rates - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Gender gap indicators - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Participation in school - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Educational attainment - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Travel time and travel costs
» Travel time to nearest health faclity: percentage with access within one hour
» Mean travel costs to nearest health faclity in Afs.
» Health post - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Clinic - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» District or provincial hospital
» Private pharmacy - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Supplementation of micro-nutrients Vitamin A supplementation
» Residence - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Child immunization Educational attainment of mother
» Residence Educational attainment of mother
» Residence Educational attainment - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Child feeding patterns Exclusive breastfeeding
» Educational attainment of mother
» Current use of family planning methods
» Use of maternal health care Antenatal care
» Fertility and pregnancy patterns
» Total - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» 16.9 - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Conceptualisation and analysis of disability
» The distribution of the disabled population
» Causes and consequences of disability
» Housing characteristics Housing ownership and characteristics
» Construction material of walls
» 4.7 - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Water and sanitation Housing facilities
» Other facilities Electricity Housing facilities
» Household decision making The position of women in decision making
» Age - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Community decision making Marital status
» The face of women in population and marriage
» Labour force indicators - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Education indicators - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Educational disparities Indicators of community representation
» Health conditions Indicators of community representation
» Decision-making Indicators of community representation
» Household shocks and coping strategies
» Community preferences - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Policy recommendations - Household shocks and community preferences 109
» Recommendations related to information provision
» Child health AFG 2007 NRVA report
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