Supporting Agricultural Productivity in Afghanistan

Farmers in a village in Herat Province see a boost in their harvests thanks to a rehabilitated irrigation system and by adopting best practices in water usage.

These are some of the positive outcomes of the On-Farm Water Management Project, which undertook the rehabilitation of the village irrigation canal.

The project, implemented by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, works to improve agricultural productivity by enhancing the efficiency of water use. It is supported by a grant from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund.

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TRANSCRIPT:

Haji Abdul Karim, 57, is a farmer in Khushk-e-Baad-e-Saba village in Enjil district in Herat Province.

The village’s farms are fed by a canal built by the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock through the On-Farm Water Management Project (OFWMP).

With support from the Afghanistan Reconstruction Trust Fund (ARTF), OFWMP works to improve agricultural productivity in project areas by enhancing the efficiency of water use.

OFWMP has established 59 irrigation associations across western Afghanistan, which have greatly reduced water-related conflict in villages and ensured the proper maintenance of newly built irrigation canals.

The Khushk-e-Baad-e-Saba canal stretches 3,315 meters and benefits more than 300 families. While previously only 75 percent of Haji Abdul Karim's farmland was cultivable, he now farms all of his land.

The canal has increased the village’s arable lands by more than 15 percent, making farming a more viable economic source of livelihood,
and transforming the village into a more prosperous, happier, and greener place.

Видео Supporting Agricultural Productivity in Afghanistan канала World Bank