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Military

29 November 2001

Text: U.N. Seeks $10.1 Million for Afghanistan Food Assistance

(FAO plans to open office in Kabul soon) (1,100)
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations is
seeking $10.1 million from donor nations for emergency food assistance
to Afghanistan.
To begin emergency activities and resume already funded programs FAO
will soon reopen its office in Kabul, according to a November 29 press
release.
"Supporting farmers and the rural economy is essential to fight hunger
and poverty in Afghanistan," said Anne M. Bauer, head of the FAO
emergency program in Afghanistan. Eighty-five percent of the country's
22 million people are directly dependent on agriculture, she said.
Bauer said that as soon as funds are available 1,500 tons of wheat
seeds will be distributed for spring planting. The autumn wheat
planting, accounting for 80 percent of the country's cereal
production, has been seriously jeopardized by drought and the war,
according to the release. FAO will also distribute animal feed and
boost its animal health work to benefit livestock owners. Sheep due to
lamb at the end of the winter are particularly at risk, said the
release.
FAO will also:
-- Begin a series of farm machinery workshops to repair agricultural
machines and tools.
-- Establish a food surveillance unit to target and evaluate
international food security actions in the region.
-- Provide 100,000 refugees and internally displaced persons with
spring vegetable kits to help them reintegrate into their villages.
Following is the text of the FAO news release:
(begin text)
FAO: 10 MILLION DOLLARS NEEDED TO SUPPORT FARMERS AND THEIR FAMILIES
IN AFGHANISTAN
Rome, 29 November -- Helping farmers and refugees to resume food
production and return to their farms will be the key challenge in the
next months in war-torn Afghanistan, the UN Food and Agriculture
Organization (FAO) said today, launching a $US 10.1 million appeal to
enable it to resume immediate emergency assistance and provide seeds,
fertilisers, feed and vaccines for animals. The appeal is part of a
wider UN effort to alert the international community to the need for
assistance to Afghanistan.
Afghanistan is facing a severe food crisis as a consequence of serious
drought, intensifying economic problems and the ongoing crisis,
according to FAO.
"Supporting farmers and the rural economy is essential to fight hunger
and poverty in Afghanistan," said Anne M. Bauer, in charge of the FAO
emergency programme in Afghanistan. "Some 85 percent of the country's
estimated 22 million people are directly dependent on agriculture.
Since the 11 September event, commercial food supply and humanitarian
assistance has been disrupted. The majority of rural people have been
struggling for survival in extreme poverty. The demand for basic
agricultural inputs is tremendous with the start of the winter
season."
"We have to do everything to make the next planting season a success,"
Anne M. Bauer said. "As soon as funds are available, some of FAO's
activities can be carried out almost immediately. The challenge will
be to support the livestock sector through the winter and the spring
planting, which starts in some regions as early as January."
The autumn planting of wheat, which accounts for 80 percent of the
country's total cereal production, has been seriously jeopardised by
drought and military actions. "Without feed and vaccines, livestock is
unlikely to survive through the winter season because of feed
shortages and disease," Bauer warned. Sheep due to lamb at the end of
winter are particularly at risk.
The country's irrigation systems are in complete ruin, while
agricultural services are virtually non-existent. Thousands of
hectares of prime agricultural land have been taken out of production
due mainly to lack of irrigation and millions of land mines. Fruit
trees and forests, once a major source of foreign exchange, have
virtually disappeared.
In order to resume already funded projects and start new emergency
activities, FAO will soon reopen its offices in Kabul and other
provinces. Many of the buildings were destroyed and looted in the past
months and important equipment was stolen. FAO will join a UN mission
in Kabul in the next days to prepare for the return of FAO staff from
Islamabad to Afghanistan.
One of FAO's immediate activities will be the distribution of 1,500
tonnes of wheat seeds for spring planting to farmers in Northern
Afghanistan, with a special focus on remote areas. FAO estimates that
the production of rainfed wheat in the Northern Provinces is down by
90 percent compared to 1998. The availability of quality seeds in
rainfed and irrigated areas is one of the major constrains for wheat
production in Afghanistan, FAO said.
Provided that funds are made available, some 100,000 war and drought
affected farm families will receive spring seeds and fertilisers for
the upcoming spring planting season. These projects will also focus on
irrigation and water resource management.
Furthermore, FAO will provide 100,000 refugees and internally
displaced people with spring vegetable kits to facilitate their return
and re-integration to their villages and towns in the rural areas.
For several years, FAO, the World Food Programme and NGOs have
successfully collaborated in a food-for-seed programme in Afghanistan,
by which improved seed varieties were multiplied by contract farmers
in exchange for flour. FAO and WFP have agreed already to continue
this programme.
In addition, FAO will distribute 1,800 tonnes of animal feed and boost
its already ongoing livestock vaccination programme in Northern
Afghanistan. A total of 18,000 head of cattle will be fed through this
project. This will benefit more than 50,000 farmers and their
families. The vaccination of animals is expected to protect up to 70
percent of livestock in the targeted areas.
Most essential animal health services, including vaccination, used to
be provided by more than 220 FAO Veterinary Field Units, employing
over 650 national veterinarians and animal health workers. FAO,
together with NGOs and other partners is planning to revive and extend
this important network.
FAO will also start the emergency distribution of animal feed and an
animal health campaign in other parts of the country in support of
100,000 war- and drought-affected livestock owners, most of them
nomads. A network of farm machinery workshops will be created to
repair agricultural machines and tools.
As soon as the security situation allows, FAO will re-establish its
regional offices in Afghanistan and its main office in Kabul.
A food security surveillance unit and an early warning system will be
established to better target and evaluate international food security
interventions in the region.
The Netherlands, the United States and Norway have already pledged
funds to assist FAO activities.
(end text)
(Distributed by the Office of International Information Programs, U.S.
Department of State. Web site: http://usinfo.state.gov)



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