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Our humanitarian action

Samangan and Bamyan Province

Food security

Area of intervention: Saighan District
Type of intervention: Rural development, Livelihood
Beneficiaries: 37 500 people

SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL opened a permanent agriculture base in Bamyan in 1997 to set up emergency, rehabilitation and agricultural development programs aiming at alleviating the economic embargo, the drought and the war effects.
In the winter of 2009, Saighan suffered from a severe drought which, coupled with the demographic increase and the very weak economy of the district, caused severe food shortage.

Therefore, SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL implemented a program to revive and strengthen rural livelihoods, by combining relief, farming system protection and preparation for resistance to future crises.

Activities:

• Improving the level of food security in a sustainable manner:
  Training sessions on crop rotation, fodder and wheat crops, livestock management and implementation of passive solar greenhouses.
• Securing yields in drought affected areas and better management of pastures:
  Better use of 200 ha of agricultural land via the exploitation of underground water resources, organization of Community Based Natural Resources Management of 200km2 of pastures.
• Increasing the rural incomes of beneficiaries:
  Technical support to vegetable producers, support for the marketing of vegetables, vocational training on mechanics (such as water-pump equipment chain).

Area of intervention: Yakawlang district
Type of intervention: Improving agricultural production
Beneficiaries:  6 324 families

Since 2004, SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL has been working to improve food security in Bamyan Province, and more specifically in the rural development of Yakawlang district. From 2006 to 2008, SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL excavated rainwater channels to increase crop yield by 50 to 200%.

The current program aims at reducing rural population’s economic vulnerability and improving the agricultural production and long lasting management of natural resources.

Activities:

• Improve the sanitation of Chaman valley to increase crop yields
• Common management of 420km2 of natural resources and pastures
• Improve livestock management, fodder, cultivation and crop rotation cycles

Rehabilitation and reconstruction

Area: Samangan Province
Type of intervention: Humanitarian response to the needs of the earthquake affected populations
Beneficiaries: 3 150 people

In Ruy-e-Doab, a district of Samangan Province, commonly referred to as the Central Highlands, the scarcity of natural resources and the problem of access to agriculture mean that this area suffers from chronic food insecurity.

During the night of April 18th 2010, Ruy-e-Doab was hit by three earthquakes (one of magnitude 5.3 and two of magniture 4.3). Moreover, the following day, heavy rains provoked floods in the same areas.

Activities:

• Identification of the most vulnerable households
• Provision of building materials, tools and cash
• Supervision of reconstruction and rehabilitation work
• Post-construction monitoring

Rural development

Area: Ruy e Doab
Type of intervention: Improving food security for vulnerable populations in remote areas of Samangan Province
Beneficiaries: 90 000 people

Ruy-e-Doab’s situation can be described as post-crisis, where the European Commission LRRD* approach is applicable (enhancement and stabilization of the livelihoods of communities suffering from food insecurity).

Activities:

• Protection and expansion of the production capacities of irrigated lands:
  Implementation of small scale irrigation projects (community based approach).
• Improvement of farming and cattle breeding:
  Strengthening the agricultural and veterinary service by establishing and enhancing a good quality seeds, supporting basic veterinary workers, stimulating small businesses.
• Strengthening alternative income generating activities:
  Development of potatoes and horticulture (which have been identified as high potential alternative crops), support for potato storage, good quality seeds and existing fruit trees nurseries.

* LRRD= Linking Relief, Rehabilitation and Development is an approach which aims to meet rehabilitation needs while conserving our emergency response capacity (drought, slow onset, floods etc.). SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL has particularly used this approach in Afghanistan as it constitutes a long-term crisis.

Central Highlands

Food security

Area of intervention: Central Highlands
Type of intervention: Emergency Food Assistance for populations affected by climatic disasters
Beneficiaries: 8 320 people

In 2010, the situation was different than normal in terms of spring rains: the populations used the terms such as “unique” to describe this year’s floods. SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL set up a food security program to meet the immediate food needs of the targeted beneficiaries.

Activities:

• Household survey
• Implementation of Cash for Work activities
• Alternative cash injection activities
  

Kabul City

Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH)

Area: Kabul City
Type of intervention: Provision of basic relief assistance to cover essential needs of vulnerable communities’ living in illegal settlements
Beneficiaries: 19 000 persons

Inexistent or poor urban planning in Kabul has created huge pressure on an already insufficient water infrastructure situation. More recently, a growing phenomenon of “urban squat” neighborhoods has emerged, which are created when families occupy “empty spaces” available within the city, and build their homes using any available material.

The main issue regarding these informal settlements is the extremely poor environmental sanitation which is creating significant health risks.
SOLIDARITES INTERNATIONAL provides emergency support aiming at improving sanitary living conditions.

Activities:

• Improving access to safe water:
  Water trucking and chlorination at water points, rehabilitation of hand pumps, jerrycan distribution, systematic cleaning and chlorination of household water storage containers
• Improving access to sanitation:
  Upgrading, emptying and maintenance of family and community latrines, bathrooms, setting up of laundry areas, solid waste collection and disposal, environment cleaning, drainage of grey and rain water to adequate facilities
• Improving hygiene related practices:
  Hygiene education sessions, hygiene emergency kit distribution and recreational kit for children
  

Other areas of Afghanistan
Disaster Risk Reduction (“DRR”)

Area of intervention: Badakhsan, Samangan, Bamyan, Ghor, Daykundi and Kabul Province
Type of intervention: Emergency Response Mechanism for populations affected by natural and man-made disasters
Beneficiaries: 24 000 people

Humanitarian response in Afghanistan is complicated by the fact that acute needs related to conflict and disasters exist alongside extensive chronic vulnerabilities resulting from underdevelopment and impoverishment. Afghanistan is highly prone to natural disasters which affect on average 400,000 people per year such as floods, droughts, earthquakes, avalanches, landslides, extreme winter conditions and agricultural related diseases.

This program aims at increasing humanitarian access and provides rapid humanitarian assistance to natural disaster and conflict-affected populations, and reduces impact of disasters on populations through timely and effective assessment, response and training.

Activities:

• Collection and sharing of disaster information to facilitate and support a coordinated humanitarian response, sharing of assessment guidelines and methodologies, dissemination of these reports, agreements with UN agencies pre-positioning shelter, Non Food Items (“NFI”), hygiene kits and food in response to disasters.

This proposal, aiming to develop an 'Emergency Response Mechanism', would be implemented by the three agencies together within a humanitarian consortium.

Update: July 2011