Minimizing impacts of drought on livestock herders by protecting livestock livelihoods of vulnerable food-insecure households in Afghanistan

The overall purpose of this emergency response project is to mitigate potential displacement induced by drought and/or giving up of herding/livestock keeping by marginal livestock holding households or distress sale of productive agriculture assets in light of the drought shock in Afghanistan. The objective of this project is to protect agriculture livelihoods of drought-affected marginal herders/livestock keepers and marginal/smallholding farming households. Through this project, underpinned by FAO’s anticipatory actions approach, two main interventions will be undertaken as follows: 

• intervention 1: 15 000 vulnerable food-insecure marginal livestock holding households (105 000 people) – who are on the verge of distress destocking of their livestock holding and giving up herding or internally displacing from their villages – will be assisted with the emergency livestock protection assistance package comprising concentrate animal feed (200 kg per household), technical training on sustainable livestock management in emergency contexts and linkage to local veterinary service provision. 
• Intervention 2: 40 000 vulnerable food-insecure marginal/smallholding farming households (280 000 people) will be assisted with two types of emergency wheat cultivation assistance packages: (i) for 20 000 households with access to irrigation, the package will comprise certified wheat seeds (50 kg per household), fertilizers (diammonium phosphate 50 kg and Urea 50 kg per household) and technical training; (ii) for 20 000 households with access to rainfed land, the package will comprise certified wheat seeds (50 kg per household) and technical training.