OVERVIEW

The Regional Agriculture Development Program (RADP) – West was a Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock (MAIL)-led U. S. Agency for International development (USAID)-funded program designed to improve food and economic security for rural Afghans in certain districts in the western provinces of Herat, Farah, and Badghis. The program supported the ministry’s efforts to improve the productivity and profitability of targeted value chains, selected from wheat, high value crop (HVC), and Livestock sectors. The program supported initiatives to train and mentor farmers and agribusinesses in the use of appropriate technologies and agricultural practices, post-harvest and value-added processing, and strengthening linkages to domestic and international markets. The program also supported the ministry in efforts to adopt longer-term improvements in national agricultural policy and regulatory development. One component was to conduct a comprehensive analysis of market and regulatory constraints to further development of the wheat, high value crop and livestock sectors and to put forward recommendations for policy improvements to address these challenges.

ACTIVITIES

RADP-West encompassed activities pertaining to farmer productivity and profitability, gender, agribusiness and alternative development:

• Wheat: Improve productivity, reduce farmers’ yield losses and strengthen linkages that connect farmers to markets, improving food security and boosting household incomes.
• High-Value Crops: Invest strategically in high-value crops – grapes, vegetables and orchard crops such as pistachios, pomegranates and peaches – to strengthen market competitiveness and build sustainable commercial exports.
• Livestock: Support farmers in maximizing opportunities for improved production, improving nutrition and reducing environmental impacts on livestock.
• Enabling Environment: Promote dialogue between the Afghan government and local producers, processors and traders to identify obstacles and opportunities to improve the quantity and quality of Afghan goods and facilitate market access and policies to better support farmers and agribusinesses.

RADP-West trained and raised awareness among farmers to increase nutrition through cultivation of fruits and vegetables and by producing and serving more milk, meat and dairy products. The program also provided competitive, innovative grants to complement training and strengthen local businesses.

ACCOMPLISHMENTS

• Benefitted 12,911 households through agriculture and alternative development interventions in targeted areas (Wheat: 6,050, HVC: 4,955, and Livestock: 1,906)
• 11,130 farmers and other beneficiaries applied new technologies or management practices
• Trained 9,029 farmers (male: 7,551 and female: 1,478) in new technologies and management practices for wheat, livestock and high-value crop production
• Trained 936 Farmer Extension Group (FEG) members (629 male, 307 female) in livestock disease prevention, control and diagnosis; the importance of vaccines, and good feeding practices
• Conducted training for 39 Veterinary Field Unit (VFU) Para-Veterinarians with a focus on equipping the Paravets with improved skills in animal husbandry and disease prevention, control, and diagnosis
• Engaged the private sector by awarding nine grants to private seed enterprises in targeted districts, reaching 4,249 farmers through a seed multiplication program through which 112.6 MT of improved/certified wheat seed and 170.35 MT of fertilizer were distributed. The farmers who received foundation and certified seed from the seed enterprises harvested 3,012 MT of high quality seed valued at $882,126, some of which was to be sold to flour mills and seed companies
• A total of 1,776 hectares of land was cultivated by the project beneficiaries. All project beneficiaries (farmers and agribusinesses) reported value of sales worth $2.2 million.
• Promoted the inclusion of women across all program components. Of the beneficiaries, 16 percent were women, and 53.5 percent of the women reported percentage increase in self-efficacy.