Food shortages in Afghanistan are severe; AIL wants to help people build community and kitchen gardens wherever there is space. One of the biggest hurdles to learning for any child is hunger. A hungry child can't focus. A hungry mother cannot support a child in all the ways she wants too. Teaching women how to create gardens that produce food will provide another nutritious food source. It will also give women more self-confidence and they will earn respect for their new horticulture skills.
Many poor Afghan families do not have enough food through lack of income. Hungry children cannot focus on learning and fall behind in their studies. Many women cannot go out of the home to earn money to buy food. This project will teach women gardening skills so they can grow food for their families and sell any excess food. The project will teach gardening skills and provide equipment, giving hungry families a food source and women the means to earn some income.
Hunger stops children learning, so an additional food source will help children perform better in school. It will also contribute to family budgets through the sale of produce. The project will provide instruction, seeds, rolls of plastic, containers and transport. Women will prepare the ground, plant seeds and learn what is needed for proper cultivation including pest control, weeding, harvesting and storing and preservation of produce.
Families will produce some of their own food, increasing their food security, reducing family stress and creating an income source. They will move closer to self-sufficiency which benefits the whole community. Children will be better fed and more able to focus on school, improving their education. Women will gain self-esteem from caring for a garden and providing food. The income earned will go to buy items or as loans so others can buy seeds, bees or poultry and start producing food.
