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October 08, 2020

Improving the understanding of agricultural cycles and practices in Afghanistan

by Ross Burgon, Head of the National SPRINT Business Support Programme, UK

Since war started at the end of 2001, the economy was severely devasted in Afghanistan, especially for the agriculture sector. Maize is the third most important cereal crop in Afghanistan, but the productivity of maize has a declining trend which may be caused by low efficiency of maize farmers nowadays.

Maize productivity fluctuated and has been decreasing in past years. In 2017, Afghan maize production was at 0.174 million tonnes, a 44 percent decrease of 0.312 million tonnes in 2016 (FAOSTAT, 2017). The productivity of maize in Afghanistan is substantially lower than that in its neighbouring countries. The low productivity of maize is mainly caused by the lack of knowledge for efficient use of inputs and poor management skills. Given the importance of maize, the increase of maize productivity is very helpful for improving food security in rural areas of Afghanistan. Thus, it is necessary for farmers to use the available resources in the most efficient ways and to achieve a higher productivity in maize production and a better food security.
 


From ‘Economic Analysis of Smallholder Maize Producers: Empirical Evidence from Helmand, Afghanistan’, published in the Journal of Agricultural Science on February 15th, 2020.

Unique insights into crop production: Surrey-based Alcis is a geographic information services company that specialises in supporting fragile and conflict-affected states. The company was founded in 2004 to support UK government efforts around crop production in Afghanistan, where through the use of remotely sensed imagery and other geographic data, it has been able to provide unique insights into what was happening on the ground.

The company is very active in this country, primarily working alongside agricultural development programmes to gather relevant, accurate and timely data that helps international donors plan and implement effective interventions, thereby providing the maximum assistance to the beneficiaries.

It maps and models crop types, land use, population and a range of other factors, joining them together through the use of their location component to derive contextual understanding. By providing this understanding, using on-line tools and maps, it helps to evaluate performance and ensure that the projects are having the desired effect.

Read the study online: myMAG.info/e/916


Read more HERE.
 

The Global Miller
This blog is maintained by The Global Miller staff and is supported by the magazine Milling and Grain
which is published by Perendale Publishers Limited.

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