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Afghans facing

food scarcity: WFP

ISLAMABAD: The people of Afghanistan have been facing acute shortage of food items, especially the wheat flour, said Country Director, World Food Programme (WFP), Afghanistan, M. A. Sackett here on Friday.

Briefing the journalists on "current trends in food securities in Afghanistan" at the local UN office, he said, "the people of Afghanistan have been facing two major problems relating to food at present."

He said, "at the national level the UN has estimated that in the year to June 30, 2000, there is a shortfall of 1.1 million tonnes between the domestic availability of wheat and the consumption needs of people."

This compares with the shortfall in the previous year estimated at 700,000 tonnes.

The second major problem, Sakett said, is that due to the collapse of the economy and employment opportunities, few people have sufficient income to buy their essential food needs, together with adequate clothing, shelter and heating fuel in the frosting winter.

Elaborating, he said, there has been a major escalation in prices of the main staple in Afghanistan namely wheat flour. In Kabul, which is now the poorest city in Asia, wheat flour prices increased from Afghanis (Afs) 11,700 (US cents 26) per kg. in October 1999, to Afs 17,100 (US cents 31) per kg at present. The increase in the price has been registered to 46 percent.

Over the same period the amount earned by a casual labourer in Kabul, for those lucky enough to find a job, has remained unchanged at Afs 70,000 (US $1.28).

This clearly indicates that the purchasing power of one day's casual labour in Kabul has declined from 6.0 kg in October 1999 to 4.1 kg of wheat flour today.

When asked about the donors which have been contributing to the WFP, he said the programme has currently received major donations from US, European community, Canada, Japan and Sweden.

Giving details about the key indicators of poverty in Kabul, he said these include: Poor rains in the 1998-99 winter caused an estimated 16 percent drop in wheat production in 1999.

Since October last the Pakistan authorities have imposed border restrictions which constrain the flow of wheat flour and other products into Afghanistan.

Very dry conditions were experienced in much of southern and central Afghanistan up to the middle of January 2000 which increased the chances of crop failure especially for rained crops.

In line to cope with these challenges the WFP has chalked out a programme according to which, every month WFP uses about 25,000 tonnes of wheat to support subsidised bakery programme in Kabul for the benefit of about 270,000 people who are entitled to buy bread at about 10 percent of the commercial cost.

He said, a winter relief food for work programme has been initiated providing more than 1,900 tonnes of wheat to employ 8,000 workers repairing roads, drainage ditches and other community infrastructure around Kabul.

In Kandhar city and surrounding districts a winter season emergency food distribution is under way aiming to distribute nearly 72,000 tonnes of food among 29,000 vulnerable families, he said.

Answering a question about epidemics he said various fatal diseases like measles and respiratory ailments have become the order of day in Afghanistan.ÑAPP