The Revival of Shahr-I-Buzurg

Posted: 8 December 2003

After earthquake rocked Shahr-I-Buzurg in northeastern Afghanistan, Oxfam provided emergency assistance and remained to help rebuild this agricultural district.

Desks being delivered to a school in Shahr-I-Buzurg, Badakhshan, Afghanistan. Oxfam's Community Assistance Program included the provision of 400 school desks to 15 schools.

By: Mohammad Salim/Oxfam

As in most regions of Afghanistan, the people of Badakhshan depend almost entirely on agriculture. Yet even in the best of times, the land is dry and unyielding.

The conditions in the district of Shahr-I-Buzurg, in western Badakhshan, are amongst the most severe. Oxfam responded to a devastating earthquake in 1998 and has remained to help communities struggling to cope with the effects of a drought that scourged the land for four years.

The district can produce only 50 percent of the wheat required to feed its people. When families run out of food, they are forced to sell possessions that they will need in the long term, such as livestock and family assets. With no emergency reserves at their disposal, they live day to day-and desperately. This time last year, 60 percent of Shahr-I-Buzurg needed food aid, and at the height of the drought many people in Shahr-I-Buzurg were being forced to eat grass.

Oxfam's Program in Badakhshan

Oxfam is working with communities to rehabilitate the agricultural sector in Shahr-I-Buzurg, and provide more than 5,000 families with food and water, better health practices, sanitation, and education.

Oxfam's community assistance program has:

Provided 5-month food assistance (through Food for Asset Creation Projects) to 5,000 families in the district, 60 percent of the total population FoodAC is similar to a food for work program. Most of the food is given to the workers, but a small portion is provided free of charge to the most vulnerable people in the participating communities.

Distributed improved wheat seed to thousands of farmers, which has contributed to a 50 percent increase in the production of wheat in 2003. The establishment of seed banks has also helped to ensure availability of improved seed for the next planting season.

Cleared six canals, and built two new canals, bringing large tracks of land under irrigation.

Constructed nine water reservoirs, providing potable water for nine villages. The villages served experienced a significant decrease in cases of water borne diseases after the water supply projects had been implemented. Oxfam Health Promoters worked with communities to raise awareness around safe hygiene and sanitation practices as the villages see they are receiving an immediate tangible benefit from these services.

Built 2,000 latrines. A total of 7,500 men, women and children have received health messages and attended health education classes. Oxfam has trained 60 women as traditional birth attendants to address the high incidence of maternal mortality in the district.

Provided teachers, training and materials for 15 primary schools in the district. These schools were provided with teaching materials and stationery, 400 sets of desks and chairs, and up to date government curriculum books. 110 teachers attended a one-week training course run by the Ministry of Education. It is now apparent that teachers are starting to teach subjects other than religion, which is the only subject taught previously. It is estimated that the number of school children increased by 40 to 50 percent in 2003, compared to 2002.

Introduced 10 demonstration farms. The farms are close to the villages or by the side of the road, where people can easily see it. Communities in villages are often sceptical about the potential impact of new or non-traditional agricultural practices and often need to see the benefits of new practices before adopting them on their own land. The participating farmers of the demonstration farms received training from Oxfam Agriculturists in new and improved agricultural practices and were encouraged to develop links with the other farmers of the wider community.

Oxfam will continue to assist communities in Badakhshan with innovative solutions for battling the poverty that has a stranglehold on their region.