To Help Ensure Food and Economic Security in Afghanistan, Invest in the Skills of Young Women and Girls

Jan 12, 2022 | Nangyalai Attal
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With the prevailing food security crisis in Afghanistan, the international community must invest in the significant potential of Afghan girls to increase their participation in formal agriculture education and cultivate the growth and prosperity of Afghanistan. Currently, more than half of the Afghan population is confronted by acute hunger due to continuing conflict, the COVID-19 pandemic, an economic collapse, and a severe drought.

Additionally, with agricultural production accounting for 23 percent of Afghanistan’s gross domestic product, it is no surprise that the agriculture sector dominates discussions among policymakers for its potential to reduce poverty and stimulate job creation. Agriculture accounts for 22.8 percent of self-employment and family businesses and provides 45 percent of all jobs in the country. Realization of the potential of the agriculture sector could increase economic growth by 7.5 percent by 2024.

In urban areas, informal agriculture is highly dependent on female workers—mostly unpaid—and outside the cities, an estimated 70 percent of rural women are involved—directly or indirectly—in farming, managing small orchards and vegetable gardens, and tending cattle. The National Strategy on Women in Agriculture (2015–20) calls for the incorporation of women’s and girls’ skills into the formal sector; equipping them with relevant skills is critical to unlocking their potential and increasing agricultural production, and thus national growth.

However, girls’ participation in agricultural Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET)—even before the dramatic events of August 2021—has been very low, resulting in thwarted aspirations and a loss of human potential. Of the nearly 20,000 students enrolled in agriculture schools and institutes in 2019, only around 2,400—less than 12 percent—were girls.