Afghanistan: Bumper Crop Harvest

Happily, Afghanistan had a bumper crop after 4-year drought. Afghanistan's cereal harvest this year will be the largest ever, but many families will depend on humanitarian assistance for years to come, the UN said.

The UN World Food Program (WFP) and the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) said Afghanistan was expected to produce 5.37 million tons of grain, largely due to good rains and better access to seed and fertilizer. "We knew the harvest would be large this year...this breaks all records. We are looking at a crop 50 per cent larger than last year's," This year's harvest means Afghanistan's cereal import requirement for the current marketing year will be around 400,000 tons, just a quarter of last year's, the statement said. Despite the apparent end to four years of crippling drought, many would still go hungry, the statement said.

Afghanistan has about 800,000 internally displaced people, many of them reliant on food aid. "Despite an expected record harvest this year, a considerable number of Afghans will continue to face food shortages and will depend on humanitarian food assistance. "The joint FAO/WFP mission to the country shows that, despite better harvests, a timely and effective food intervention to assist the poorest of the population in helping them rebuild an asset base for their livelihood is essential." Besides cereal production, Afghanistan is the world's largest producer of opium (Reuters, 8/15/03).