Are wheat seeds distribution programs suitable for all farmers in today

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Are wheat seeds distribution programs suitable
for all farmers in todays Afghanistan?By
Jean-Christophe Duchier, agronomist, junior
researcher

• UNDERSTAND LOCAL DIVERSITY TO DESIGN SUSTAINABLE
  PROGRAMS

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Plan

• Researchs issues
• Baharak, a densely populated valley
• Which households diversity?
• Which programs diversity?

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1. Research issues

• Are wheat seeds distribution program always
  relevant?
• How to ensure a better integration of relief and
  development programs?

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2. Baharak, a densely populated valley

• Description
• Agricultural history

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Baharak, a densely populated valley
Where is it?
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Baharak, a densely populated valley
Characteristics

• Mainly irrigated fields
• 50,000 inhabitants
• Sub-urban area
• Located on the main road crossing Badakhshan

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Three periods
Baharak, a densely populated valley
Governments UNs, NGOs programs

• Most of the infrastructures are destroyed
• Lots of refugees come back
• The central government has less power

Wheat replaces grazing land
Agropastoral period
Cash crop including poppy are increasing in the
cropping pattern

• More people so
• Basic food needs increase
• Land pressure increases

Intensification is the natural evolution of this
agriculture
War and END of war (returnees and new
consumption goods)

• Low population density
• Remote area

General development (especially health,
education) MORE and MORE people
1900
2005
1979
1930

• Minimum diversification (meat, bread, vegetable)
• Priorities were given to livestock breeding
  thanks to the low land pressure

• Less fallow and grazing land
• Prority is given to cereals to cover the
  increasing food needs

Land becomes extremely rare Land price are
unaffordable
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3. How to address the households diversity?

• Typology as a tool
• The land capital
• The labour ratio

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Which households diversity?
Why a typology?

• To have a comprehensive view of the households
  diversity
• To identify relevant projects for every types of
  farmers

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Which households diversity?
Land ratio
LAND ratio
1,25 jb/adult
LABOUR ratio
Adult gt 12 years old
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Why THIS typology?
WHY 1.25 jb/adult?
All data comes from 100 random interviews
Wheat is the most important crop in the afghan
culture.
One adult eats 35 ser of wheat per year
One jerib gives about 100 sers of wheat
35 / (100-20-25) / 2 1,25

• Wheat is a biennale crop.
• Cost of production 20 and 25 sers

One adult needs 1,25 jerib to be self-sufficient
in wheat
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Which households diversity?
Labour ratio
LAND ratio
Difficult to build up again the land capital
because of land pressure
Division of land during the transmission or
Birth of children
1,25 jb/adult
Womens work outside the compound is unusual in
Baharak
1 male worker can support 2 other family members
LABOUR ratio
Adult gt 12 years old
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Why 1 male worker can support 2 other adults?
Basic food 23 to 32 afs/day per adult
Fuel, clothes are essential (50 to 100 afs/day
and per family)
Daily salary 150 to 300 afs/day. It is regarding
the season, type of job...
3 adults need 75 to 100 afs per day for basic
food and about 50-100 afs/day for fuel 125 to
200 afs/day
On day labourer 150 afs/day
On day labourer doesnt work throughout the year
One worker can at the least support 3 adults
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Which households diversity?
Change of family structure birth of children
LAND ratio
Difficult to build up again the land capital
because of land pressure
Division of land during the transmission or
Birth of children
1,25 jb/adult
1 male worker can support 2 other family members
LABOUR ratio
Adult gt 12 years old
Change of family structure The elders children
are able to work
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6 types of households
2
1
1,25 jb/adult
3
4
1 male worker can support 2 other family members
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Womens involvement in agricultural tasks
Farming systems based on wheat
Households able to produce surpluses or/and have
enough domestic workers (30)

• Households grow high-value crops
• Households keep on farming wheat and resort to
  non farm activities

Non farm acrivities
Credits and assets depletion (70 )
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4. Which programs diversity?

• Development programs have to be diversified
• Development programs should be flexible enough to
  integrate relief programs

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Which development programs?
Programs have to involve women to get over the
lack of male domestic workers
Wheat seeds distribution programs are not
efficient for these households. These programs
prevent them to try out other cropping systems
LAND ratio
Since these households have enough male domestic
workers, they are less receptive to this type of
programs
2
1
Since these households are facing a lack of male
domestic workers, they can be receptive to this
type of programs
1,25 jb/adult
But, these cropping systems request lots of
labour force
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1 male worker can support 2 other family members
LABOUR ratio
80 of households do not have enough land to
produce an extra
High value crops could be more adapted
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Programs have to be adapted to the local
diversity in order to be relevant and sustainable
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About poppy
There are many factors which influence farmers.
Each one has to be taken into account
Credit Poppy allows access to credit
Location the government has more or less control
Poppy chain is the most developed crop chain
Decision making process
Attracted to new consumption goods
Crisis war, drought, disease
Land ratio
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Relief or development
LAND ratio
2
1
1,25 jb/adult
4
3
1 male worker can support 2 other family members
LABOUR ratio
6
5
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Activity system
Households needs
SHOCKS
Non farm activities are non sufficient for the
housholds facing a lack of male domestic workers
Credits are expensive (debt burden)
Development programs should be flexible enough to
integrate relief programs
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Conclusion

• Local diversity exists and has to be taken into
  account. (women example)
• More field studies in order to understand the
  local diversity
• Program design should be based on the local staff
  knowledge

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• Thank you for your attention

If you have any question.