Afghanistan, one of the poorest countries in the world, is severely hit by the rise in food prices. Compared to March 2007, there has been an 80 percent increase in wheat prices. And the prices have exploded throughout the month of April. Afghans are being pushed into poverty. The number of beggars in the streets of Kabul is going up day by day and many families have started to sell assets in order to buy food. Reports from the field also indicate that families are taking their children out of school to send them to work for food. Over the last few days, people have turned to the streets demanding that the problem is addressed.

The global rise in food prices, aggravated by the decrease in import from Afghanistan’s main wheat supplier, Pakistan, and a shortfall in domestic agricultural production, has pushed millions of Afghans into the high risk category of food insecurity. At the beginning of the year about 6.5 million of the estimated 24.5 million people in Afghanistan were considered food-insecure by FAO. The figure has increased considerably over the past months.
In March 2008 the price of wheat was 24 Afs per kilo. An average government worker’s salary in comparison is about 3000 Afs a month; 100 Afs a day. Due to the soaring rise in prices, people who are not involved in agriculture spend an average of 75 percent of their income on food. And there is not much hope for the future; no one believes that the prices will return to the levels of last year.
USAID reports that “food assistance and activities to strengthen households’ purchasing power are needed from now until at least May 2009”.  

The serious situation could deteriorate even further if this years’ harvest fails. Lack of rain and less snow this winter is now threatening to cause drought in parts of the country. Additionally, the unusually harsh winter caused many farmers to lose the sowing season due to the low temperatures. Displacement has already started in certain areas, as people are searching for other income opportunities. 

Reports from the field indicate that people are adopting negative coping strategies; selling off assets and livestock to buy food, something which will damage their future possibilities to quickly and fully recover and to generate income. Young men have reportedly left their homes to engage in the poppy harvest in the South and families have started migrating to neighboring countries. Stories of people attempting to sell off their kids in desperation have also reached the capital.   

Rising food prices do not only have a direct impact on the population, it is also limiting the impact that agencies have when providing food assistance. The increased price means that less food can be purchased with the limited resources available to assist food insecure people. CARE is engaged in food assistance and the increase in food prices means we will be able to purchase less food for the budgeted money, thus reach fewer beneficiaries or scale down on rations in the future. In July 2007, the price per MT was 250 USD. Since then the price has tripled, and the current price is 750 USD.
CARE has assisted poor communities in Afghanistan for decades, trying to provide people with income opportunities. The rise in prices is now pushing people who have successfully made a living for themselves back into the rows of those in need for direct food assistance. Food assistance that now requires three times the funding to provide. CAREs Humanitarian Assistance for the Widows of Afghanistan (HAWA) project has been providing food assistance to vulnerable widows in Kabul for years. However, the country office has been scaling back on the direct food assistance to focus on more sustainable solutions. Due to the price rise, widows that through the project had become self sufficient are now likely to fall back into eligibility for direct assistance; something CARE has no budget for.
In addition, our own colleagues are becoming more and more vulnerable to the price rise. National staff of the lowest wage categories is currently at risk of food insecurity. Rigidity in budgets is preventing many aid organizations to increase staff salaries. There is just not money for it.

CARE Afghanistan is still assessing the situation and evaluating which activities we eventually would initiate, particularly with regard to direct food assistance. 

1. Donors should increase funding for new and ongoing projects, in order to ensure that salaries for their implementing partners are sufficient.
2. Policy interventions to facilitate bilateral agreements for import should be encouraged.
3. Well targeted food assistance and activities to strengthen households’ purchasing power is needed.
4. Long term support for the Government of Afghanistan to develop long term solutions to food insecurity is fundamental.
5. Global revision of Agricultural policies which enables developing countries to produce their own food.

For more information, contact marit.glad@care.org.af