Afghanaid is an international charity that operates only in Afghanistan. We work alongside Afghans in the most remote and marginalised areas of Afghanistan, to help them meet their survival and development needs.
About us
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Ghor
SUPPORTING THE FORGOTTEN PROVINCE
Hemmed in the high mountains and straddling the middle of Afghanistan, Ghor is one of the most remote, tough and inaccessible regions of Afghanistan. The scope of irrigation is limited, so farmers rely on rain-fed cultivation and livestock development even though rainfall amounts are very variable and inadequate and the provice has suffered from persistent drought in recent years. It is for the most part a seasonal economy. One of its important features is the movement of the nomadic Kuchis into Ghor during the summer months from the neighbouring plains. Kuchis own the bulk of provincial livestock and also control a great deal of the access to to pasture land. During the winter, there is also a major movement of male labour out of Ghor, as the local economy does not provide enough jobs. Ghor has a thriving seasonal trade in local products, which include livestock, walnuts, dried apricots, qorot (dried yoghurt), kurk (fine wool from the ear of the goat), and black cumin.
Recent statistics show that Ghor is a one of the most vulnerable provinces in Afghanistan, with some of the highest poverty indicators. There is a less than 15 per cent literacy rate for women (and only 7 per cent of girls under 14 attend school), while deaths among children under 5 are the highest in Afghanistan.
Afghanaid began work in Ghor in 2000, when it launched an integrated rural development programme in Cheghcharan and neighbouring districts with support from the European Community. Ghor was chosen as it was a largely forgotten province with enormous needs. Afghanaid was on of the first NGOs to work there and has taken a leading role in campaigning for international support for the development of the province. During 2005/06, Afghanaid worked in 216 communities across Chegcharan, Lal wa Sarjungle, Dawlatyar and Shaharak districts. Over the next year, it will expand to a further 80 communities across Dawlatyar and Charsada.
