Case Studies - Livelihoods
Home garden and livestock support packages in
Afghanistan
Background
The northern regions of Afghanistan are flat, desert lands, which experience harsh summers and bitter
winters. Following years of war and displacement, many families are returning to their homelands in the
north of Afghanistan, only to find that there are few opportunities to earn a living.
Tearfund, working with local partners, developed two support packages intended to improve nutritional
intake and provide additional sources of livelihoods for vulnerable families in Jawzjan and Kandahar.
Home gardening project
In total, 1,550 households were provided with the home garden package. Beneficiaries received:
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at least ten hours training on:

simple vegetable gardening techniques, including land preparation, irrigation, weeding,
harvesting etc

marketing techniques to help them earn income from produce
•
•
•

information on nutritional intake and how to prepare and consume vegetables
seeds for up to six types of vegetable (quantity and type of seed was based on marketability,
nutritional benefits and the amount of land available)
home gardening tools
regular visits to monitor activities.
Home gardens were affected by drought and project delays, but despite this 100 per cent of the seeds
given to beneficiaries in Jawzjan were cultivated and 92 per cent of seeds distributed in Kandahar were
planted. The remaining eight per cent were not cultivated because of a lack of access to land.
Due to a mixture of delays, lack of land and drought, the home garden package did not reach its full
potential to impact beneficiaries. In Kandahar, only 20 per cent of the vegetables were harvested (only
spinach) while in Jawzjan, 80 per cent were harvested (okra, spinach, onion and leeks). Tomatoes and
aubergines were not successful in Jawzjan because the water supply was insufficient and of poor
quality (due to drought and saline water in the area).
Vegetable gardens are particularly dependent on the weather, and therefore should be considered as
supplementary to other forms of livelihood rather than as the primary source of income. Vegetable
crops harvested were shown to supplement family diets and boost household incomes through the sale
of surplus produce. One beneficiary in the Jawzjan province raised AFN 2,700 (about 60 USD) from his
vegetable sales that season.
Tearfund is a Christian relief and development agency working with a global network of local
churches to help eradicate poverty
www.tearfund.org 100 Church Road, Teddington
TW 11 8QE, UK Registere d Charity No. 265464
Livelihoods
The home garden package was designed to encourage the development of vegetable gardens in or
near village centres to boost household income and family nutrition. Although some internally displaced
people (IDPs) did not own their own land, surveys suggested that they would be able to access land in
the community.
Case Studies - Livelihoods
Livestock support
The livestock support package aimed to improve households’ dietary intake, as well as diversifying
sources of income and providing a ‘fall back’ in times of hardship. Some 1,550 families were selected to
receive one goat and five chickens, as well as at least four hours of training on animal husbandry and
nutrition. The animals provided were vaccinated to reduce the risk of disease, and vet visits were
facilitated to monitor the health of the animals and provide any additional training.
A goat offspring repayment system was set up by forming a community livestock banking system
(CLBS), where beneficiaries return the first offspring of their goats so that it can be given to other
vulnerable families. In Jawzjan, the CLBS was able to provide a second set of beneficiaries with goats.
Some 87 per cent of beneficiaries were eating animal products, and 38 per cent were selling items in
the market (30 eggs per week sell for AFN 150).
While both support packages improved nutritional intake and income, recipients expressed concerns
about the appropriateness and quality of provisions. Some seeds were not thought to be of good
quality or suitable for the conditions within the region. Similarly, some livestock provided was not as
expected, being old or in poor health. Beneficiaries felt that the number of goats provided was too low
to make a difference, and suggested that, in the future, involving them more in procurement could
improve the outcome. It is important to include beneficiaries in the selection of inputs, or to use fairs
and voucher programming where possible, to avoid some of these challenges.
Tearfund is a Christian relief and development agency working with a global network of local
churches to help eradicate poverty
www.tearfund.org
100
Church Road, Teddington