The European Union (EU) and the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) launched a €5 million initiative to help Afghan farmers and agribusinesses reach markets, generate more reliable incomes and better withstand climate and economic shocks.
The project will support vulnerable households, including returnees, internally displaced people and host communities, in districts affected by food and nutrition insecurity, climate risks and limited economic opportunities, particularly women and youth.
The initiative will establish four one-stop service hubs connecting farmers and rural entrepreneurs with agricultural advice, specialized services, agribusinesses and markets. The hubs will promote improved practices and technologies while providing access to FAO’s climate analysis and early-warning information to support farmers make timely production and marketing decisions as conditions change.
It will restore 2 000 hectares of degraded forests and rangelands and support 250 women- and community-led nurseries, protecting natural resources while creating new livelihood opportunities.
FAO will also award matching grants and provide tailored technical and business advice to established agrifood and environmentally sustainable enterprises with the potential to expand and develop. Participating businesses will contribute their own resources alongside project funding, enabling them to expand processing and other services, source from more local producers and create rural jobs.
“The European Union’s contribution to FAO demonstrates our continued commitment to food security and economic empowerment of the Afghan people,” said Nicola Bellomo, the new EU Chargé d’Affaires for Afghanistan. “Afghanistan’s agricultural potential remains undervalued and constrained by the country’s extreme climate vulnerability. With our partner FAO, we will boost agricultural extension services, enhance growth potential for agribusinesses, foster innovative nature-based solutions, and improve evidence-based knowledge and analysis.”
“As we pivot away from largely humanitarian programmes towards more sustainable approaches, Afghanistan’s agrifood businesses have demonstrated real potential to grow, create jobs and connect farmers to markets, even in a highly challenging environment,” said Richard Trenchard, FAO Representative in Afghanistan. “Together with the European Union, we will connect farmers with the knowledge, services and markets they need, while helping agribusinesses invest and expand. When farmers can produce with confidence, businesses can grow and products can reach markets, agriculture becomes a powerful engine for recovery and resilience.”
Source: FAO
