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FAO, World Bank step up response to Afghanistan’s food security crisis

The UN’s Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) welcomed an unprecedented $150 million contribution from the World Bank to provide critical livelihood and life-saving assistance to the most vulnerable rural populations in Afghanistan.
High levels of acute food insecurity persist across Afghanistan due to a combination of a collapsing economy and continuing drought, the FAO reported.
The ripple effects from the war in Ukraine are exacerbating the food security situation, pushing food prices to new highs, increasing the costs of vital agricultural inputs, especially fertilizer, and placing pressure on countries in the region supplying wheat to Afghanistan to restrict food exports, giving priority to their respective domestic consumption.
The new Afghanistan Emergency Food Security Project will boost the production of food crops for smallholder Afghan farmers and prevent the further deterioration of food security, the FAO stated.
This is the first tranch of a total amount of $195 million, another $45 million will be released within the next 24 months.
“We are grateful to the World Bank and its Members for the generous and timely contribution”, said FAO Director-General QU Dongyu .
“It is a historic moment for poor farmers in Afghanistan, and it represents an important milestone in our collective efforts to deliver results at scale, avert a looming catastrophe and make real transformative differences in the lives of vulnerable people”.
FAO will be the sole implementing partner for the funding and will focus on wheat production, supporting about 2.1 million people, and will provide focussed support on the nutritional needs of children, people with disabilities or chronic illness, and households headed by women by providing seeds and basic tools for backyard kitchen gardening and technical training on improved nutrition and climate-smart production practices.
Almost 1 million people will benefit from this support and these inputs, particularly targeting rural women.
FAO stated that 150,000 women will receive training on improved cultivation techniques and nutrition.
The project will also increase access to irrigation water, and improve soil and water conservation.
Under this component, more than 1.9 million people will benefit from cash for work activities for the restoration of irrigation infrastructure and watershed management.
The FAO food security project is one of the three projects totalling $793 million approved by the World Bank to provide urgent and essential livelihood and health services, in addition to food assistance, to the people of Afghanistan.
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Needy families in Nangarhar receive Ramadan aid from Bayat Foundation

On the occasion of Ramadan, Bayat Foundation delivered food aid to dozens of needy families in Afghanistan’s eastern province of Nangarhar this week.
The organization’s officials said that the aid packages include flour, rice, and cooking oil, which was distributed to the needy after a transparent assessment.
“Bayat Foundation helps thousands of families across Afghanistan every year. Fortunately, today this Ramadan aid was distributed to hundreds of families in Jalalabad. This aid includes flour, rice, and cooking oil,” Attaullah Sahil, a representative of Bayat Foundation in Nangarhar, said.
Appreciating Bayat Foundation’s assistance, officials of the Nangarhar Department of Economy called on other charities to help the needy during the holy month of Ramadan.
“These families are very deserving families who were selected after conducting a survey in the presence of representatives of the Department of Economy and Bayat Foundation. All families are deserving, and they include widows, the disabled and the poor,” Mohammad Asif Rahmani, a representative of the Nangarhar Department of Economy, said.
Recipients welcomed the Ramadan aid from Bayat Foundation, saying that those in need require more help.
Haider, an aid recipient, said: “We are very poor people. There are no job opportunities. Thank you very much to Bayat Foundation for helping us.”
Mohammad Zaman, another aid recipient, said: “During this Ramadan, I was facing difficulties. I could not find sustenance. Bayat Foundation helped us. May God help it.”
Bayat Foundation has helped the needy not only during the holy month of Ramadan, but also during natural disasters, and has continued to cooperate with government institutions in various sectors, especially health and education.
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IEA controls power in Afghanistan, security prevails: Araqchi

Iran’s foreign minister, Abbas Araqchi, has said that the Islamic Emirate controls power in Afghanistan and security prevails across the country.
Speaking in an interview with Khabar Online, Araqchi said that before the Islamic Emirate took over, different parts of Afghanistan would be governed by different groups.
“The reality is that now there is a power in Afghanistan that has consolidated its rule over the past three and a half years, and unlike in the past, when every corner of Afghanistan was in the hands of different people, this is not the case now. Security and rule prevail. We must address the issues and resolve them for our national interests,” Araqchi said.
The Islamic Emirate welcomed the remarks saying that it indicates an understanding of the realities in Afghanistan.
“This actually means a correct understanding of the realities in Afghanistan. It is a fact that there is a single political governance in Afghanistan that has complete control over Afghanistan,” Hamdullah Fitrat, deputy spokesman for the Islamic Emirate, said.
Araqchi also added in his interview that there are issues in Afghanistan that are related to Iran’s national interests, so he traveled to Kabul to discuss them with the officials of the Islamic Emirate.
He mentioned water rights, presence of Afghan refugees in Iran and Daesh as issues that need to be discussed between the officials of the two countries.
The Iranian diplomat said that Tehran, like other countries, has not recognized the Islamic Emirate, but despite sanctions, trade is taking place between the two countries in high volumes.
Separately, Deputy Prime Minister for Administrative Affairs, Abdulsalam Hanafi, said in a meeting with the acting ambassador of Afghanistan to Iran recently that Afghanistan and Iran have long-standing religious, historical, cultural and economic relations, and the embassy officials should make every effort to strengthen them.
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Uzbekistan sends essential food aid to Afghanistan

Marking the new solar year, 1404, and the holy month of Ramadan, Uzbekistan this week delivered almost 200 tons of food aid to Afghanistan via Balkh province.
This is in line with Uzbekistan President Shavkat Mirziyoyev’s directive that humanitarian aid be sent to Afghanistan, Kun.uz reported.
The essential food items were handed over in Hairatan border town in a ceremony attended by Uzbekistan’s Special Representative for Afghanistan Ismatulla Irgashev; Surkhandarya governor Ulugbek Kosimov; representatives from relevant ministries; Balkh provincial governor Muhammad Yusuf Vafo; and other officials from both countries.
The aid package consists of flour, wheat, pasta, vegetable oil, sugar, instant meals, red beans, and mung beans.
Additionally, a bilateral meeting was held in Mazar-e-Sharif, where discussions focused on advancing future cooperation. During the talks, special attention was given to the construction of the Imam Bukhari Mausoleum in Afghanistan, a project supported by Uzbekistan.
Afghan officials expressed gratitude to the president and people of Uzbekistan for their assistance, Akipress reported.
At the end of December, Uzbekistan sent humanitarian aid containing food and medicine to Afghanistan, as well as a “health train”.
Uzbek doctors conducted free medical examinations of the population in Balkh province between December 25 and December 30.
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