Recently, citizens built a small dam in the Jaguri district of Ghazni province, in the east of the country, 150 kilometers from the capital, Kabul. It was built in a mountainous area with a depth of 22 meters to retain flood waters and reduce their destructive effects, in addition to using them in times of drought.
This initiative comes after episodes of severe drought in Afghanistan in recent years, which negatively affected the lives of farmers, in addition to threatening the Afghan economy.
Because of the drought, two million people faced the risk of food insecurity in Afghanistan, after farmers in about 20 Afghan provinces postponed the cultivation of wheat and reduced their areas due to drought, although about 14.8 million people out of 30 million in the country depend largely on agriculture, According to the report of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs 2018.
In the first quarter of this year, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies said: “The drought has become an economic crisis in a country where agriculture is critical, with more than 70 percent of Afghanistan’s population living in rural areas and about 80 percent dependent on agriculture. on agriculture.”
The effects of climate change were not limited to droughts, but also caused devastating floods in Afghanistan, where the heavy rains that have fallen on Afghanistan for more than a month have killed 182 people and injured 250 others, including women and children, and more than 3,000 homes were destroyed. Rainfall, as well as the destruction of agricultural lands in the east of the country, according to statements by Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, early this month.
Civil Dams Initiative
Afghan environmental researcher, Hamid Ataya, said in exclusive statements to “Sky News Arabia”, that climate changes have severe negative effects on Afghanistan, so the civil dam initiative contributes to reducing the dangerous repercussions of floods and drought.
The dam building initiative was not limited to the self-efforts of Afghan citizens only, but also water management experts are working on erecting dams to exploit flood waters in the eastern part of the country, according to Atay.
The Afghan environmental researcher, also pointed out that the value of these dams is that they prevent two dangers, the risk of devastating floods that sweep entire regions, as these dams will hold water in certain places, in addition to that this water will act as a savior in times of drought.
But Attay also pointed out that despite the civil and governmental efforts in building dams, they still need the support of international and regional organizations, especially since Afghanistan is among those countries that are highly vulnerable to the effects of climate change such as drought and floods.
The Afghan researcher believes that in light of the efforts made by the Gulf Cooperation Fund to confront the effects of climate change in developing countries, it can provide the necessary funds for such projects.
A solution to a complex crisis
Afghan journalist and researcher Fadel Al-Qaher Qazi praised the initiative and described it as “important”, noting that Afghanistan has been suffering from severe drought for years, and its repercussions are still serious and the Afghan citizen suffers from it.
Drought led to the destruction of many agricultural crops, after Afghan farmers failed to provide the water needed to irrigate their lands, which reflected on Afghan food security, according to the Afghan researcher.
The Afghan researcher also points out that some local residents in the northern provinces of Afghanistan have started the process of building dams with modest capabilities, and the Taliban government, represented by the Ministry of Water, is building dams to meet the water shortage.
Qazi also pointed out that the water crisis is complicated in Afghanistan, especially in light of the border problems with neighboring “Iran” regarding the water file, specifically in the state of “Nimroz” in the southwest of the country, which is experiencing some border problems, as Iran demands its share of water , which is subject to internal opposition.
Qazi concluded his speech by saying, there are also demands to build dams on the Pakistan-Afghanistan border, especially in the “Kuner” region, to face the problems facing the country, whether water shortage or floods, which can be invested by holding them and reducing their destructive effects, and then benefiting from this water later. Especially during bouts of thirst and dehydration.
Recently, Martin Griffiths, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs, revealed in his report to the Security Council, that Afghanistan’s humanitarian, economic and climate crisis, as well as a hunger and financial crisis, has caused:
Nearly 19 million people face acute levels of food insecurity, including six million people at risk of starvation.
Three million children suffer from acute malnutrition, including one million children suffering from the most life-threatening forms of malnutrition.
* More than half of the population, about 24 million people to humanitarian assistance.
The malnutrition crisis exacerbated with recurrent drought, and the drought in 2021 was the worst in three decades, and its effects still remain.
* About 25 million people live in poverty, and unemployment can reach 40 percent.
#Dams #selfefforts. #Afghan #attempt #cope #drought #floods