FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 12/1/95 Jim Du Bruille, jim@ifhope.org (93) (0) 70 605 705 Lila Gault, (212) 242-5644

       
Major Alternative Crop Initiative Launched 
in Eastern Afghanistan

Agricultural Programs Gain Importance in US Development Assistance

Narcostate today, but maybe not forever.

Opium poppy will no longer be the only high value crop in Afghanistan, as farmers throughout the country struggle to make a living after 25 years of war.  Contrary to a recent CBS News/60 Minutes report, alternative crops that have been promised are now being delivered.

Beginning with the upcoming early winter planting season, thousands of Afghan farmers will have high value fruit and nut trees to plant, because of the Eastern Region Orchard Development Project, signed last week by Development Alternatives Inc. (DAI) and the International Foundation of Hope (IFHope).  The $3.48 million, three year USAID funded program is based in Nangarhar Province around its capital city of Jalalabad and also assists farmers in the neighboring provinces of Laghman and Kunar.

IFHope, an NGO working in Afghanistan since 1998, has planted more than
2,000,000 trees in its Jalalabad tree nursery, first established in 2002 with USAID support.  Under the technical guidance of Ahmad Said, one of the most respected tree horticulturalists in the region, the 183 acre nursery is planted with 1,000,000 almond, apricot, citrus, pomegranate, apple and peach saplings – grafted to regionally adapted varieties.  In addition, several types of pine, cedars, mulberry, cypress and eucalyptus have completed a second year of growth and are ready for reforestation efforts.  Fast growing poplar, in heavy demand for building construction, is also available.

“The scale of this project far exceeds other agricultural development programs in the Eastern Region to date,” said Christopher Seeley, Project Director at DAI Inc., the USAID contractor who administers the program.  “Through this program alone, we plan to work with 5000 farmers and plant 7400 acres of orchards over the next three years.”

The Eastern Region Orchard Development Project will be staffed by agricultural engineers and extension agents, trained by IFHope in cooperation with Nangarhar University and the Ministry of Agriculture, Washington State’s Wenatchee Valley Community College, and Iowa State University.  The nursery currently employs 200 local residents.

The program works to identify the best growing areas for commercial production, and is contacting local governing councils to determine which farmers would best succeed in orchard production.  Local district agricultural ministries will also be closely involved and will maintain contact with and receive support from the National Agricultural Ministry.

The land is surveyed and new orchards are designed and planted. IFHope agricultural specialists make regular site visits throughout the year to provide additional inputs and technical training.

According to Jim Du Bruille, IFHope’s Chief of Operations, when the orchards attain full production, this project will create more than $8 million in annual profits to the participating farmers. In addition, over 500,000 person-days of labor will be required for orchard operations each year.  “It would be hard to find many better sources of alternative livelihood in production agriculture than fruit and nut trees”, DuBruille concludes.

To provide income until the orchards are in full production, vegetables and other annual crops will be planted between the rows of trees.  Dairy livestock and poultry will also be made available.

In January 2005, USAID launched alternative livelihoods programs to assist the Government of Afghanistan with its fight against illicit poppy production.
Alternative Livelihoods Program-Eastern Region is a four year program to help the people of Nangarhar, Laghman and Kunar Provinces build their own sustainable licit economy.  In addition to improving agricultural production and business opportunities, the program includes technical assistance, access to finance and credit, and training and capacity building.

In the short term, what is grown and harvested as a result of the Eastern Region Orchard Development Program will be sold domestically.  The export market, especially for high value fruits and nuts, in neighboring countries, is an important target for the
future and has traditionally been a major source of jobs, income and foreign exchange.