Baghlan, one of Afghanistan’s leading agricultural provinces, is known for its fertile farmland and the heavy reliance of much of its population on agriculture and livestock farming. In recent years, however, climate change, irregular seasonal rainfall, and flash floods have caused severe and often irreparable losses for thousands of farmers across the province.
The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Afghanistan has reported that 3.4 million people across the country were affected by drought.
The importance of improved seeds and row planting for farmers in Uruzgan is not limited to higher production; it also helps them cope with climate change. In recent years, drought, declining rainfall, and water shortages have directly affected wheat yields, leaving many farmers facing economic hardship.
Recent floods and heavy rainfall in Badghis Province have caused extensive damage to farmland, orchards, and people’s property. A number of farmers say these events have not only destroyed the results of a year’s hard work but have also left the livelihoods and primary sources of income of many families in crisis.
In recent years, agricultural land in Kunduz has come under increasing pressure from multiple environmental challenges. Water resources have declined, surrounding forests have been destroyed, pasturelands have been overused, and climate change has made the province’s soil more vulnerable than ever before.
Consecutive droughts in Al-Jihad District of Sar-e Pol Province have created serious challenges for livestock owners. Shortages of fodder, dried grazing lands, and water shortages have caused many families to lose part of their livestock or sell their animals to sustain their livelihoods. However, the recent rainfall over the past month has renewed hope among livestock owners across the district.
A number of farmers in Badakhshan say that this year’s rainfall has been more regular than in previous years, having a positive impact on their farmland. They say most of the province’s agricultural land is rainfed and that insufficient rainfall in recent years has led to reduced crop yields.
Ghazni is one of the key agricultural provinces in the central part of Afghanistan, where a large proportion of residents across its eighteen districts are engaged in farming and livestock rearing to cover their living expenses.
Consecutive droughts over the past several years have had widespread negative impacts on agriculture in Paktia, reducing rainfed crop yields and causing significant financial losses for farmers.
Animal Health officials in the province, after technical investigations, have identified the primary cause of the livestock deaths as the simultaneous outbreak of three infectious diseases: blackleg, anthrax, and enterotoxemia.
A widespread infestation of the Wheat Sunn Pest (kafshak) has caused serious concern among farmers in wheat fields across Faryab Province. Field reports indicate that this year’s outbreak has increased significantly compared to previous years, severely affecting the districts of Pashtun Kot, Almar, Shirin Tagab, Chehel Gazai, Khwaja Namusi, and Qaisar.
In recent years, climate change, as one of Afghanistan’s most serious challenges, has left widespread impacts on the agriculture and livestock sectors. Reduced rainfall, rising temperatures, and continued droughts have gradually destroyed natural pastures and reduced fodder production — a situation that has seriously threatened the livelihoods of thousands of livestock-raising families, particularly in Kapisa province.
