Mother Dreams Of More Cash Cows

Sima Behbodi started dairy farming four years ago with just one calf. Today, says the mother of seven, “I have eight cows and all produce milk.” Sima is one of many women in her area who were trained in dairy farming at a Veterinary Field Unit. USAID’s Incentives Driving Economic Alternatives for the North, East, West (IDEA-NEW) ... More

Happy Farmers Of Faryab

For years, Habibullah, a potato farmer in Afghanistan’s northern province of Faryab, struggled to support his family. His land never yielded enough to pay for everything his three children needed. “I needed to buy wheat, oil, sugar, clothes, stationary and medicine” but there were never enough potatoes, Habibullah recalls. His ... More

Better Jobs Lead to Better Living

Karim and Jamil are graduates of the vocational training pro-gram organized by USAID’s Incentives Driving Economic Alter-natives for the North, East and West (IDEA-NEW). They are helping build a fruit and vegetable wholesale market in Qala-i-Naw, the capital of Badghis province. Karim, a re-bar installer, attended three weeks of training ... More

Afghan Women Plot Against Floods

More than two hundred women work in ten gabion weaving centers in Pachir Wa Agam and Chaparthar districts of Nangar-har province. The centers were established by USAID’s Incen-tives Driving Economic Development for the North, East, West (IDEA-NEW) Project. “Even though it is a hard work to weave gabions by hands, we are still happy to ... More

Karez Rehabilitation Changes Life

Water is a critical yet scarce resource in Afghanistan’s agricultural economy. Poorly maintained or destroyed irrigation systems result in low agricultural yields, affecting rural communities that are dependent on agriculture for their livelihoods. The Baghcha karez in Shinwar District of Nangarhar Province, servicing farmland used by 260 ... More