gender agricultural innovation

7/28/2019 Gender Agricultural Innovation

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June2011

GenderandtheAgriculturalInnova7onSystemin

RuralAfghanistan:BarriersandBridges

AfghanistanPublicPolicyResearchOrganiza7on


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Acknowledgments

Thispaperisaproductoftheresearchproject,GenderandtheAgriculturalInnova7onSysteminRural

Afghanistan:BarriersandBridges,fundedbytheInterna7onalDevelopmentResearchCentre(IDRC).

Backgroundresearchforthispaperwasmadepossiblethroughfundsandotherformsofassistancefromthe

WorldBank,DACAAR,andAPPRO.Thebackgroundresearchpapersusedinthissynthesispaperarepublished

as:UnderstandingGenderinAgriculturalProduc3on:AnAnnotatedBibliographyfortheCaseofAfghanistan;UnderstandingGenderinAgriculturalProduc3on:AReviewoftheLiteratureandaConceptualFramework;

ValueChainGovernanceandGender:SaffronProduc3oninAfghanistan;andAfghanWomenintheRaisinand

AlmondValueChains,allavailablefromAPPROswebsiteat:www.appro.org.af

AbouttheAuthors

TheAPPROteamresponsibleforthisresearchconsistedofSaeedParto(DirectorofResearch),Anastasiya

Hozyainova(DirectorofResearch),andRozbihMihran(Researcher),assistedbyJosWinters,NafasgulKarimi,

andZarghonaSaify(Researchers).JoostGorterworkedasaconsultantfortheoverviewworkongrape/raisin

andalmondvaluechains.APPROexpressesitssincerethankstoIDRCandtheWorldBankfortheirsupportand

feedbackonthevariousaspectsofthisresearch.

AboutAPPRO

AfghanistanPublicPolicyResearchOrganiza7on(APPRO)isanindependentsocialresearchorganiza7on

promo7ngsocialandpolicylearningtobenefitdevelopmentandreconstruc7oneffortsinAfghanistan.APPRO

isregisteredwiththeMinistryofEconomy(Registra7onNumber:1212)asanot-for-profit,non-government

organiza7onandheadquarteredinKabul,Afghanistan.

APPROsmissionistomeasuredevelopmentprogressagainststrategicreconstruc7onobjec7vesandprovide

insightsonhowtoimproveperformanceagainstthemilestonessetbythegovernmentofAfghanistanandthe

interna7onaldonors.APPROisstaffedbypersonnelwithmanyyearsofcollec7veexperienceinvariousfacets

ofdevelopmentandscien7ficresearch.

Photograph

Shelledalmonds,aobi,kishmishi,unshelledso^shellalmonds,andsaffrontea.AnastasiyaHozyainova.

APPROtakesfullresponsibilityforallomissionsanderrors.

i

(c)2011.AfghanistanPublicPolicyResearchOrganiza7on.Somerightsreserved.Thispublica7onmaybe

reproduced,storedinaretrievalsystemortransmi edonlyfornon-commercialpurposesandwith

wrièncredittoAPPROandtheauthors.Wherethispublica7onisreproduced,storedortransmièd

electronically,alinktoAPPROswebsitewww.appro.org.afshouldbeprovided.Anyuseofthis

publica7onfallingoutsideofthesepermissionsrequirespriorwriènpermissionandcanbesoughtby

[email protected]+9300538081.
http://www.appro.org.af/http://www.appro.org.af/http://www.appro.org.af/


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Glossary

AAIDO AfghanistanAlmondIndustryDevelopmentOrganiza7on

ADP Alterna7veDevelopmentProgram

ACCI AfghanistanChamberofCommerceandIndustries

Aabi Sundriedgrape

ALP Alterna7veLivelihoodProgram

ANNGO AfghanNa7onalNurseryGrowersOrganiza7on

APA AfghanPrideAssocia7on

APPRO AfghanistanPublicPolicyResearchOrganiza7on

ASAP AfghanistanSustainableAgricultureProgram

AVIPA AfghanistanVouchersforIncreasedProduc7oninAgriculture

CHAMP CommercialHor7cultureandAgriculturalMarke7ngProgram

CSO CentralSta7s7calOffice(Afghanistan)

DACAAR DanishCommi`eeforAidtoAfghanRefugeesDfID DepartmentforInterna7onalDevelopment

EPA ExportPromo7onAgencyofAfghanistan

FAO FoodandAgricultureOrganiza7onoftheUnitedNa7ons

GDA GlobalDevelopmentAlliance

HLP Hor7cultureandLivestockProgram

ICARDA Interna7onalCenterforAgriculturalResearchinDryAreas

IDEA-NEW Incen7vesDrivingEconomicAlterna7vesfortheNorth,EastandWest

IDRC Interna7onalDevelopmentResearchCentre

Kishmish Shadedriedgrape

Kishmishkhane GrapeDryingHouse

Kishmishpaki RaisinCleaningOpera7on

MAIL MinistryofAgriculture,Irriga7on,andLivestock

MEDA MennoniteEconomicDevelopmentAssociates

MFI MicrofinanceIns7tu7on

MISFA MicrofinanceInvestmentSupportFacilityforAfghanistan

PHDP PerennialHor7cultureDevelopmentProgram

PRT ProvincialReconstruc7onTeam

RALF ResearchforAlterna7veLivelihoodFund

RAMP RebuildingAgriculturalMarketsProgram

UNIFEM UnitedNa7onsDevelopmentFundforWomen

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TableofContents

...................................................................................................................Execu7veSummary 1

..........................................................................................................................1.Introduc7on

..........................................................................................2.ResearchProblemandApproach 8

.............................................................................................................3.GoalandObjec7ves 10

.......................................................................................................................4.Methodology 10

.................................................................................................................5.TheValueChains 11

..............................................................................................5.1Grape/RaisinValueChain 12

......................................................................................................5.2AlmondValueChain 13

.......................................................................................................5.3SaffronValueChain 14

........................................................................................................................6.KeyFindings 18

........................................................................6.1Evalua7onofGrape/RaisinValueChain 18

....................................................................................6.2Evalua7onAlmondValueChain 19

.................................................................................6.3Evalua7onofSaffronValueChain 20

................................................................AgriculturalInnova7on,Gender,andIns7tu7ons 20

...................................................................................................................1Grape/Raisin 20

...........................................................................................................................2Almond 21

............................................................................................................................3Saffron 22

...................................................................................8.ConclusionsandRecommenda7ons 23

............................................................................................................................Bibliography 28

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Execu?veSummary

Afghanistanhascompara7veandcompe77vestrengthsintheagriculturesector,par7cularlyinthehor7cultureandlivestocksub-sectors,inwhichwomenareknowntopar7cipatelargelyinthe

primarystagesofproduc7onandprocessing.Orchardfruitssuchasgrapes/raisinsandalmondshave

significantpoten7alforgrowthinexport,whilesaffron,arela7velynewmaincrop,hasgreatvalue

andthepoten7altocompetewithpoppycul7va7on.Un7lthelate190sAfghanistansupplied20%

oftheraisinsontheglobalmarket,heldadominantposi7oninpistachioanddriedfruitproduc7on,

andproducedlivestockandwoolproductsfortheregionalmarkets.Theintermièntperiodsof

conflictsincethelate190scombinedwithperiodicdroughtshaveresultedinlossofagriculturally

produc7velandandweakenedproduc7vecapacityduetoflightofcapital,displacementoffarming

communi7es,neglectofirriga7onchannels,diminishedtechnicalandmarketsupportand,

ul7mately,lossofmarketshare.

TheGovernment,supportedbyahostofinterna7onaldonors,hascommièdtomeasurableimprovementsinwomenseconomicopportuni7esandaccesstoandcontroloverproduc7veassets

andincome.However,thereisinsufficientpreciseandreliableknowledgeaboutgenderrela7onsin

agriculturalproduc7onandthepoten7alforwomentoassumeamorecentralrole.The

reconstruc7onoftheagriculturesectorinAfghanistanrequiresiden7fyingsystemresilienciesand

establishingwhatworksdespitetheinsurmountablebarriersconfrontedbythesectoroverthe

yearswhileac7velypursuinginnova7vealterna7vestoexpandthescopeofcurrentac7vi7esand

increasegenderequityandproduc7vity.

Thepaperhastwobroadgoals.First,toestablishtheextenttowhichwomencontributetosocial

andeconomicvalue-addingac7vi7esintheagriculturesectorbasedoncurrentincen7ves,linkages,

habits,prac7ces,rou7nes,technologies,andpolicies.Second,toiden7fythepathwaysthroughwhichinterven7oninthecurrentarrangementsislikelytohavethedesiredimpactofmainstreaming

womeninagriculturalinnova7onwhileincreasingeconomicoutput.

Alargepor7onofraisins,almond,andsaffronproducedinAfghanistanislikelytocon7nuetobe

poorlyprocessedorshippedinbulktoothercountriesforfurtherprocessingandpackaging.Inpart

thisisduetoagenerallackofaccesstosufficientandadequatestoragefacili7es,andproduc7on,

processing,andtransporta7oninfrastructure.Theimpactofinadequateinfrastructureis

compoundedbyotherfactorssuchaslackofdirectaccesstoglobalmarkets,inadequateregulatory

framework,poorlyfunc7oningministriesandcross-ministerialbodies,andalackofruleoflawand

security.Themosteffec7vewaytominimizetheimpactfromthesefactorsandtoensurecashflowis

toexportproduceandproductsasquicklyandasconvenientlypossible.Thisoênresultsinselling

insufficientlyorinadequatelyprocessedproduceandunfinishedproductstointermediarycountries

forfurtherprocessingandvalue-addingac7vi7es,therewardsforwhichgotoothercountries.

FormanyAfghanproducerssellingofunder-processedproduceisthemostconvenientwayof

capitalizingontheirlaborandinvestmentwithouthavingtoworryaboutthefinishandqualityofthe

finalproduct.Thisisunderstandablesinceins7tu7nginterna7onallyrecognizedqualityandhygiene

standardsisafunc7onofhavingthestandardsinplace,andmostimportantly,havingthestandards

recognizedbytheenduserinothercountries.Suchrecogni7ontakes7me,requiringpa7ence,

persistence,andlonger-termperspec7ves,whichtendnottobefeaturesofentrepreneursopera7ng

inconflictsitua7onsorinterna7onaldonorprogramsfocusedonexitstrategiesinshortorder.

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Giventhissitua7on,itisrealis7ctoexpectthattheproduc7onsophis7ca7onnecessaryforbecoming

contendersintheglobalmarketswillremainadistantprospectfortheoverwhelmingmajorityof

Afghanproducersandexporters.Thissaid,rela7velystraighorwardinterven7onssuchastraining

onsepara7ngthedifferentvarie7esofalmondforgradinganduse,i.e.,sweetversusbi`eralmonds,

gradingdifferenttypesofraisin,andintroduc7onofmechanizeddryingforsaffroncanbeintensifiedtogeneratesomevalue-addingac7vi7esinthethreevaluechainsexaminedforthisresearch.A

broaderinterven7onpossibilityisfortheGovernmentofAfghanistantoplayamorecentralrolein

industrialdevelopmentby,forexample,buyingbulkfreshproducefromthegrowersandthenadding

valuethroughgovernmentrunfacili7es.Thisapproachisalsolikelytoleadtostandardiza7onof

quality.

Afghanwomensroleinruralagriculturalproduc7onneedstobedifferen7atedfromotherrural

valuechainsstudiesfromaroundtheworld.ComparisonsofAfghanwomeninruralproduc7onto

thatofwomeninAfrica,forexample,whileusefulforguidingthegeneralapproachtogender

mainstreaming,havetobenuancedandcontextualizedtofittheAfghancondi7ons,par7cularlyin

rela7ontoreligious/tradi7onalandrenewedsensi7vi7esaboutwomensroleinsocial,economic,

andpoli7calac7vi7es.Suchsensi7vitydoesnotmeancapitula7ontothecurrentinequitable

condi7onsforwomen.Rather,itshouldleadtoconcludingthatchangingculturalnormsabout

womensplaceinsocio-economicac7vityhastobeaccompaniedwithotherprogramma7cmeasures

inawarenessraising,educa7on,andregulatoryreform.Assuch,allinterven7onsaimedatremoving

barrierstoincreasedpar7cipa7onbywomeninsocietymusthaveprovisionsonimprovingskills

trainingincludingliteracy,empowermentthroughpar7cipa7oninwomensproduc7ongroups,and

mobilitybywomenandamongwomenwithinandbetweenvaluechains.

Afghanwomenplayvariousrolesinweeding,watering,harves7ng,cleaning,drying,andgrading

ac7vi7eswithinthegrape/raisin,almond,andsaffronvaluechains.Theirpresenceandprominence

diminishesandalmostdisappearsasonemovesupthesevaluechains,however.Womensworkin

thethreevaluechains,par7cularlyatthelowend,ismostlyunpaidwhiletheyarepaidlowerthanmenforcomparablejobsfurtherupthevaluechains.Atthelowerendofthesevaluechainsthe

womensinvolvementisversa7leandflexible,allowingforeconomicallyop7malthoughsocially

inequitablefemalelaborinputwhichhasbeenpointedtoasakeyreasonforeconomicproduc7vity

invaluechainsaroundtheworld.

Genderinequityinthesevaluechainsisafunc7onoflandownershiparrangements,ini7alcapital,

divisionoflaborwithinthehousehold,tradi7ons,culturalandreligiousnorms,levelofeduca7on,

andbiasedandunhealthymarketprac7cesbysomeactors.Thecombinedimpactofthesefactors,

manifestedasbehavioral,cogni7ve,andcons7tu7veins7tu7ons,placeswomenatasignificant

disadvantageagainstmen,evenwhenwomenareabletoovercomesomeoftheothermainbarriers

suchasaccesstocapitalorgainingtheirhusbandsapprovaltowork.Thissitua7onspeakstotheprevalenceofthewidelyheldbeliefsthatgoverngenderrela7onsthroughoutAfghanistanwithsome

localstructuresrela7ngtotheplaceofwomeninsocietybeings7ckierthanothers.

Thetradi7onalviewofwomenasmainlyhomemakersismorevisibleintheruralpartsofthecountry

ascomparedtourbanareasinwhichsomewomencanworkoutsideofhomeandsupplementthe

incomegeneratedbythemalehouseholdmembers.Tradi7onallymenareincontrolofthe

accumulatedwealthofthefamilyandactasthehouseholdsmaindecisionmaker.Whilefemale

householdincomeearnersmaygainmoreofavoiceinhouseholddecision-making,thebalanceof

powerovertheuseofhouseholdassetsremainswithmenandislegi7matedandstrengthenedby

thereligiousinheritancelawswhichen7tleawomantohalfofwhatamanreceives.Thepossibili7es

forwomentogainahigherdegreeofindependencebasedonaccumulatedwealtharethuslimited

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duetothisverycons7tu7vestructurethatdefineshowsocie7esfunc7on.Over7me,thishas

resultedinmenspossessionofmostofthelandinthefamily.Anumberofwomenfromthesaffron

producingassocia7onsinHeratspokeofthesefactorsatlengthandintermsoftheirdisadvantaged

posi7ontoprofitmorefromgrowingsaffron.

Thedominantvaluesrootedinsocial,cultural,andreligiousbeliefsalsodeterwomenfromreaching

themarkets.Womensunwillingness,fear,orprohibi7ontofreelyexplorethemarketslimittheir

capacitytoeffec7velyemploythelimitedresourcestheyhaveattheirdisposaltomakeafairprofit

fromtheircontribu7onsinthethreevaluechains.Evenincaseswherewomenhaveorganized

themselvesasassocia7ons,asinthecaseofsaffron,themaindecisionsaremadebythefewmale

memberswhoarehusbandstosomeofthewomeninthegroups.Womenhaveli`leknowledgeof

thena7onalandinterna7onalmarketsfortheproductstheyhelpgrowandprocess.Thevast

majorityofthewomenhavetogothroughthemalemembersoftheirfamiliestoselltheirproduce,

buy,orreceiveinputmaterials.Thebarrierstowomensfullpar7cipa7onineconomic/

entrepreneurialac7vityarecompoundedbyuncheckedprejudicesofmale-dominatedmarket

oligopolies.

Intheabsenceofawholehostofpre-requisitessuchasawidelyrecognizedregulatoryframework,

func7oningministriesandcross-ministerialcommi`ees,andruleoflawandsecurityitisunrealis7c

toexpectthatchaingovernanceandgenderissuescouldbeaddressedformallyandthrough

regulatorychannels.Financialindependenceforwomen(throughaccesstoaffordableloans,for

example)andconsensualcontrac7ngmechanismsbetweenwomenproducersandthelarger

producersmediatedbyintermediariessuchasDACAARmaybeusefulintermediatemeasuresto

addresssomeofthemostpressinginequi7esinproduc7on.

Apartfromhome-basedhandicra^produc7onincludingcarpetweavingandneedleworking,

agriculturalvaluechainemploymentistheonlyviableareaforruralAfghanwomentoworkoutside

theirunpaiddomes7cresponsibili7es.Assuch,gendermainstreaminginterven7onswillneedtocon7nuecrea7ngspacesforwomentoassumemorecentral,produc7ve,andremuneratedrolesin

themoreviablevaluechainssuchasgrape/raisin,almond,andsaffron.Moreextensiveusecouldbe

madeoffemaleextensionworkerstofacilitatewomensaccesstonewprocessingmethods,higher

levelofproduc7onhygiene,andpost-harvesthandlingtechniquesinpackagingandmarke7ng.The

limitedsupplyofagriculturalloans(especiallyloanswithanextendedgraceperiodtoaccountforthe

longlagsingrape,almond,andsaffronproduc7on)andsocialbarriers(includinglimitsoninterac7on

andmobilityofwomen)canbeaddressedtosomedegreethroughincreasedpresenceoffemale

lendingofficersatMicrofinanceIns7tu7ons(MFIs).Theforma7onofwomenproducerassocia7ons

shouldalsobeintensifiedasthemeansthroughwhichtodeliverextensionservicestowomenand

createopportuni7esforthemtoundertakecollec7veac7vi7essuchassengupcollec7onpoints

withlow-techprimarystoragefacili7estoenableoff-seasontrade.

Themainstreamingwishedforwomeninagriculturebytheinterna7onaldonorsneedsbe

contextualizedinanalysesofwomensotherresponsibili7esandburdenssuchaschild-bearing/care

work,householdwork,andcommunityworksuchascaringfortheelderly.Also,gender

mainstreaminginterven7onsshouldbebasedontheunderstandingthatthesocialnormsthatcreate

barrierstowomenspar7cipa7onineconomicac7vityvaryfromonepartofAfghanistantoanother

dependingonthedegreeoftradi7onalismpresent.Forexample,whilewomensinvolvementinthe

fieldsmaynotbeacceptableintheSouth,itiscommonforwomentobeinvolvedincropharves7ng

insomeareasoftheNorth.Similarly,womenfromHeratarerela7velymoreempoweredto

par7cipateinentrepreneurialac7vitythanwomeninthesouthernandsoutheasternpartsofthe

country.

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Futurepolicydevelopmentandinterven7onstoregenerateandstrengthenagriculturalproduc7onin

Afghanistanwillneedtobeguidedbythelearningfromwhathasbeenaccomplishedtodate,the

interven7onfailures,andthecrea7onand/oriden7fica7onofnewproblemsandchallenges.This

researchhasshownthatthechallengeofgendermainstreaminginagricultureinAfghanistanisnot

simplytocreatespacesandopportuni7esforwomentopar7cipateinvalue-addingac7vi7es.A`en7onneedstobepaidtochaingovernancedynamics,basedonafullunderstandingofgender

rela7onsandtheinterrela7onsbetweenthevariousactorsinthevaluechainsbeingtargetedfor

interven7on.Asthesaffroncaseillustrates,evenwhenwomenhavecomethroughthehurdlesof

workingrela7velyindependentlyofthemenintheirfamilies,theyareconfrontedwithdismissaland

beingsidesteppedbymaletraders.

Akeyfindingfromthisresearchisthatiden7fyingalterna7vecropssuchassaffronandstrengthening

exis7ngcropssuchasgrapesandalmonds(andpomegranates)isonlythebeginningoftheprocess

ofchange.Oncechangeisini7ateditwillrequireallmannerofotherinterven7onstoprotectthe

growersofthenewandstrengthenedcropsagainstthreatsarisingfromresistancebasedon

tradi7on,e.g.,theplaceofwomeninsociety,deteriora7ngsecuritycondi7ons,e.g.,thethreatby

an7-governmentelementsagainstsaffronfarmers,andanoversuppliedinterna7onalmarketfor

Afghanproduceandproducts,e.g.,adropinthepriceofsaffronintheglobalmarket.Rebuildingthe

agriculturesectorinAfghanistanisbestviewedasamul7-levelprojectrequiringinterven7onsfrom

withinthecountryaccompaniedbyahostofotherinterven7ons(andconcessions)fromtheoutside

soastocreateaprotectedspaceintheglobalmarketforAfghanproducerstoestablishthemselves

andthrive.

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1.Introduc?on

InAfghanistanthepercentageofwomeninvolvedinagriculturalproduc7onises7matedat65%oftheagriculturalworkforce.Womencarryoutthebulkofsuchvalue-addingac7vi7esasdomes7c

choreswhilethetradingandmarke7ngoffinishedagriculturalproductsarecarriedoutalmost

exclusivelybymenwhoarealsothemainfinancialbeneficiariesoftheprocess.Twokeyfactors

contribu7ngtotheseinequitablearrangementsaregenderbiasbasedondeeplyingrainedcultural

normsandthehighlyinformalagriculturaleconomy.

Afghanistanhascompara7veandcompe77vestrengthsintheagriculturesector,par7cularlyinthe

hor7cultureandlivestocksub-sectors,inwhichwomenareknowntopar7cipatelargelyinthe

primarystagesofproduc7onandprocessing.Orchardfruitssuchasgrapes/raisinsandalmondshave

significantpoten7alforgrowthinexport,whilesaffron,arela7velynewmaincrop,hasgreatvalue

andthepoten7altocompetewithpoppycul7va7on.Un7lthelate190sAfghanistansupplied20%

oftheraisinsontheglobalmarket,heldadominantposi7oninpistachioanddriedfruitproduc7on,andproducedlivestockandwoolproductsfortheregionalmarkets.Theintermi`entperiodsof

conflictsincethelate190scombinedwithperiodicdroughtshaveresultedinlossofagriculturally

produc7velandandweakenedproduc7vecapacityduetoflightofcapital,displacementofframing

communi7es,neglectofirriga7onchannels,diminishedtechnicalandmarketsupportand,

ul7mately,lossofmarketshare.

TheGovernment,supportedbyahostofinterna7onaldonors,hascommi`edtomeasurable

improvementsinwomenseconomicopportuni7esandaccesstoandcontroloverproduc7veassets

andincome.However,thereisinsufficientpreciseandreliableknowledgeaboutgenderrela7onsin

agriculturalproduc7onandthepoten7alforwomentoassumeamorecentralrole.The

reconstruc7onoftheagriculturesectorinAfghanistanrequiresiden7fyingsystemresilienciesandestablishingwhatworksdespitetheinsurmountablebarriersconfrontedbythesectorovertheyears

whileac7velypursuinginnova7vealterna7vestoexpandthescopeofcurrentac7vi7esandincrease

genderequityandproduc7vity.

Mainstreamingwomeninagriculturalproduc7onrequiresasystemicunderstandingofthe

organiza7on(s)ofproduc7onandneedstobebasedonlocalgeography,genderrela7ons,andother

localfactors.Introducedformsofeconomicorganiza7ontoincreasegenderbalanceandagricultural

produc7oninAfghanistanwillneedtobecognizantof,andresonatewith,centuries-oldstructuresof

economicorganiza7onincludingthealloca7onofgenderroles.Atthesame7me,gender

mainstreaminginterven7onsmustchallengesomeoftheexis7ngsocialandeconomicins7tu7onsin

ordertopursueprogressiveeconomicandsocialchange.

Thisstudywasundertakentoiden7fyconstraintsandexploreopportuni7esforwomentopar7cipate

andimprovetheirposi7oninvariousstagesofagriculturalproduc7on.Thissynthesisreportisbased

onbackgroundpapersongrape/raisin,almond,andsaffronvaluechains.1Thereviewoftheexis7ng

literatureonagriculturalvaluechains,valuechainanalysis,andgenderin/andagricultural

_____________________________________________________________________________________

1Seethefollowingpapersavailableonwww.appro.org.af:

SaeedPartoandRozbihMihran.2010.UnderstandingGenderinAgriculturalProduc7on:AnAnnotatedBibliographyfor

theCaseofAfghanistan.(APPRO:Kabul)

SaeedPartoandRozbihMihran,2010.UnderstandingGenderinAgriculturalProduc7on:AReviewoftheLiteratureanda

ConceptualFramework.(APPRO:Kabul)

SaeedPartoandRozbihMihran.2010.ValueChainGovernanceandGender:SaffronProduc7oninAfghanistan.(APPRO:Kabul);and

JoostGorterandSaeedParto.2011.AfghanWomenintheRaisinandAlmondValueChains:LiteratureReview.(APPRO:

Kabul).
http://www.appro.org.af/http://www.appro.org.af/http://www.appro.org.af/http://www.appro.org.af/


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developmentwasusedtodevelopananaly7calframeworktoexaminegenderin/andvaluechain

dynamics.Thedataongrape/raisinandalmondvaluechainsweredrawnfromexis7ngreportsand

previousresearchwhilethedataonthesaffronvaluechainwerecollectedthroughanextensive

literaturereview,fieldvisits,focusgroupdiscussions,andinterviewswithkeyinformantsinawide

numberofsengsna7onallyandinterna7onally.

Usingacasestudyapproach,theresearchcollectedandanalyzeddatafromprimaryandsecondary

sourcestodescribetheactorsandthefactorsthatshapetheagriculturalinnova3onsysteminthe

threevaluechains.Akeygoalinthisresearchwastoestablishtheextenttowhichwomencontribute

tosocialandeconomicvalue-addingac7vi7esinthethreevaluechainsandiden7fythepathways

throughwhichinterven7oninthecurrentarrangementsislikelytohavethedesiredimpactof

mainstreamingwomeninagriculturalac7vitywhileincreasingeconomicoutput.

2.ResearchProblemandApproach

Womenareresponsibleforproducing0%-80%offoodcropsinSouthAsia.2Theyraisechickensand

collecteggs,waterandweedcrops,cleananddryfruitsandvegetables,andprocessandpackage

agriculturalproduceorproducts.Thereisfarlessinvolvementofwomeninmarke7ngandtradingof

thegoodstheyhelpproduce,however.InAfghanistanthepercentageofwomeninvolvedin

agriculturalproduc7onises7matedat30%oftheagriculturalworkforce.3Womencarryoutthebulk

ofsuchvalue-addingac7vi7esasdomes7cchoreswhilethetradingandmarke7ngoffinished

agriculturalproductsarecarriedoutalmostexclusivelybymenwhoarealsothemainfinancial

beneficiariesoftheprocess.Twokeyfactorscontribu7ngtotheseinequitablearrangementsare

genderbiasbasedondeeplyingrainedculturalnormsandthehighlyinformalagriculturaleconomy.

Sinceagricultureaccountsforapproximately32%ofAfghanistanslicitgrossdomes7cproduct,

systemicinterven7ontoincreaseproduc7vitythroughchangesintheorganiza7onofproduc7on

includingtheintroduc7onofnewtechnologiesisnecessaryforcrea7ngmoreviablelivelihood

alterna7ves,par7cularlyforwomenwhoaremostvulnerableinpoorerruralcommuni7es.However,

thereisinsufficientpreciseandreliableknowledgeaboutgenderrela7onsinagriculturalproduc7on

andthepoten7alforwomentoassumeamorecentralrole.Thekeyques7onguidingthisresearch

was:Howcanthesystemicbarrierstogendermainstreaminginagriculturalproduc3onbeaccounted

for,overcome,orneutralizedthroughincreasedproduc3vityinagriculturalproduc3on?

Thisresearchu7lizestheno7onofinnova7onconsistentwithSchumpetersbroaddefini7onto

includetheintroduc7onofanewgood,introduc7onofanewmethodofproduc7on,openingofa

newmarket,conquestofanewsourceofsupplyofrawmaterialsorpart-manufacturedgoods,andimplementa7onofanewformoforganiza7on.4Schumpeterdoesnotmakereferencetogenderin

hisdefini7on,thougharguablyhemighthavedonehadhefocusedoninnova7oninagricultural

produc7oninadevelopmentcontext.Iftheemphasisininnova7onisonvalueaddi7onandwealth

genera7oninagivencontext,theninnova7onneedstobedefinedbasedonlocalgeography,gender

rela7ons,andotherlocalfactors,whichmanifestthemselvesasins7tu7ons,orstructuring

phenomena.5

8

_____________________________________________________________________________________

2Samson,2006.GenderandScience,Technology,andInnova7on.Dra^discussionpaperavailablethroughIDRC(O`awa).

3WorldBank(200):WorldDevelopmentReport2008(WashingtonD.C.:WorldBank).

UNIFEM(2008):AfghanistanFactSheet2008,availableat:h`p://afghanistan.unifem.org/media/pubs/08/factsheet.html

4Schumpeter,J.(1934).TheTheoryofEconomicDevelopment.(Cambridge:HarvardUniversityPress;NewYork:OxfordUniversityPress[1961]),firstpublishedinGermanin1912.

5Blake,M.andS.Hanson(2005).Rethinkinginnova7on:Contextandgender.EnvironmentandPlanningA 3:681-01.
http://afghanistan.unifem.org/media/pubs/08/factsheet.htmlhttp://afghanistan.unifem.org/media/pubs/08/factsheet.htmlhttp://afghanistan.unifem.org/media/pubs/08/factsheet.htmlhttp://afghanistan.unifem.org/media/pubs/08/factsheet.html


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Forthisresearch,ins3tu3onsarethusdefinedasstructuringphenomenamanifestatdifferentlevels

ofinter-rela7on,territorialscalesofgovernance,andindifferentspheresofhumanac7vity.6Further,

ins7tu7onsareviewedasawidespectrumofstructuresrangingfromsocialandtradi7onalto

societalandformal,whichcollec7velygivecharactertothemodeofgovernanceofacommunityof

actors.Theapproachforthisresearchisconsistentwithwhathasbeensuggestedforinnova7onsystemresearchinadevelopmentcontext.8Theaddedcontribu7onofthisresearchisthe

applica7onoftheinnova7onsystemsframeofanalysistoAfghanistanasamainlyagrarianeconomy

strugglingtoemergefromthreedecadesofwaranddestruc7on.

Thethreevaluechainsweremappedanddocumentedasfocalcomponentsofthena7onalsystemof

agriculturalinnova7oninAfghanistan.Themappingwasalsousedtoexaminetwosetsof

constraints,andtosuggestremedialac7onthroughpolicyanddonor-aidedprogramstoaddress

them.Thefirstset,organiza7onalconstraints,wasseenasinfluencinggenderbalanceintheprocess

ofintroducingbasicimportsubs7tu7onmeasuresthroughtechnologytransfer,extension,andother

measuressuchasruralmicrofinance.Thesecondset,ins7tu7onalconstraints,wasviewedas

influencingmacro-measuresaimedatreducingthequan7ta7veandqualita7vegendergapsin

agriculture-basedproduc7on.

Theworkonthefirstsetofconstraintswascarriedoutthroughanexamina7onofthepolicyprocess

forrevivingagriculturalproduc7oninAfghanistansince2002,theimpactofthesepoliciesbasedon

theinforma7onavailablefromsecondarysources,andtheassessmentoftheimpactonwomen

basedoninterviewswithkeyinformantsfromthesector.Analysiswascarriedouttorevealpath

dependency,thepaceofchange,andtheevolu7onoftheac7vi7es,roles,andrela7onshipswithin

theinnova7onsystemasobservedthroughthethreevaluechains.Theworkonthesecondsetof

constraintsconsistedoftakinganinventoryofformalandinformalins7tu7onsthatstructurethe

agriculturesectorincludingthealloca7onofgenderroles.Theinventoriedins7tu7onswerethen

assessedforsignificancebasedonthetypologyofins7tu7onsoutlinedintheFigure1todetermine

entrypointsforpolicyinterven7ontoeffectins7tu7onalchange.9

Thenextsec7onoutlinesthegoalandtheobjec7vesforthisstudy.Sec7on4providesmorespecific

detailsonthemethodologyemployedandtherelevanceoftheinnova7onsystemsapproachasa

meanstoinves7gatethepoten7alfortechnologicaladvanceandinnova7oninagricultural

produc7oninAfghanistan.Par7culara`en7onispaidtogenderrela7ons.Sec7on5providesthekey

findingsfromthisresearchwhileSec7on6concludeswithaseriesofrecommenda7onsforpolicy

andfutureresearch.

9

_____________________________________________________________________________________

6Parto,S.(2005).EconomicAc7vityandIns7tu7ons:TakingStock.JournalofEconomicIssues,39(1):21-52.

See,forexample,Scho`er,A.(1981):TheEconomicTheoryofSocialIns3tu3ons (NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress);

Williamson,O.E.(1985):TheEconomicIns3tu3onsofCapitalism (NewYork:FreePress);North,D.C.(1990):Ins3tu3ons,

Ins3tu3onalChangeandEconomicPerformance (NewYork:CambridgeUniversityPress);andNelson,R.R.andB.N.

Sampat(2001):MakingSenseofIns7tu7onsasaFactorShapingEconomicPerformance,JournalofEconomicBehavior

andOrganiza3on,44:31-54.

8See,forexample,OECD(199):Na3onalInnova3onSystems (Paris:OECDPublica7ons);Mytelka,L.andK.Smith(2002):

PolicyLearningandInnova7onTheory:AnInterac7veandCo-EvolvingProcess,ResearchPolicy,31:146-149;andHall,

A.J.,N.G.Clark,R.V.Sulaiman,andS.Taylor(2002):Ins7tu7onallearningthroughtechnicalprojects:Hor7cultural

technologyR&DsystemsinIndia,TheInterna3onalJournalofTechnologyManagementandSustainableDevelopment ,

1(1):25-39.9SeeParto(2005),above,andParto,S.(2008).Innova7onandEconomicAc7vity:UnderstandingtheRoleofClustersin

IndustrializingEconomies.JournalofEconomicIssues,42(4):1005-1035.


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3.GoalandObjec?ves

Thegoalforthisresearchhastwomaincomponents.First,toestablishtheextenttowhichwomen

contributetosocialandeconomicvalue-addingac7vi7esintheagriculturesectorbasedoncurrent

incen7ves,linkages,habits,prac7ces,rou7nes,technologies,andpolicies.Second,toiden7fythe

pathwaysthroughwhichinterven7oninthecurrentarrangementsislikelytohavethedesired

impactofmainstreamingwomeninagriculturalinnova7onwhileincreasingeconomicoutput.Using

acasestudyapproach,datafromprimaryandsecondarysourceswereanalyzedtoprovide,as

accuratelyaspossible,anassessmentoftherolesoftheactorsandthefactorsthatcons7tutethe

agriculturalinnova7onsysteminthethreevaluechains.Theresearchwasaimedataddressingthe

followingobjec7ves:

Objec?ve1:Mapanddocumenttheagriculturalinnova7onsysteminthethreevaluechainsof

grape/raisin,almond,andsaffron.

Objec?ve2:Examinegenderdynamicsinthethreevaluechainstoiden7fytheimpedimentsto

greaterinvolvementofwomeninthefullstrataofproduc7onstagesfromthefarmtothemarket.

Objec?ve3:Iden7fyopportuni7esforsystemicinterven7ontofacilitateincreasedproduc7vityand

genderbalanceinthethreevaluechains.

Objec?ve4:Compilefurtherresearchandpolicyop7onsaimedatgendermainstreamingin

agriculturalproduc7on.

4.Methodology

Themappingandtheanalysisoftheavailableandgathereddatafocusedonvalue-adding,agriculture-basedac7vi7esanddecision-makingprocessesthatinvolved,orofferedapoten7alto

involvewomenwhilemee7ngeconomicobjec7ves.Further,thisresearchinves7gatedthe

impedimentsto,andthepoten7alfor,developinggendermainstreamingstrategiesbasedoncurrent

arrangementsinthethreevaluechains.

Theinnova3onsystemapproachdrawsa`en7ontothelearning,change,adaptability,andresilience

ofasystemofproduc7on.Theframeworkemphasizestheimportanceoftheins7tu7onalcontext

andhow,collec7vely,ins7tu7onsgoverntheac7onsoftheactorsinagiven(delineated)systemof

produc7on.Putdifferently,theinnova7onsystemapproachviewstheemergenceofchangeand

noveltyasaproductofhowactorsinter-relateintheirins7tu7onalcontext.Viewedinthislight,

ins7tu7onshaverela7vepermanencyandlongevityandaremanifestasacon7nuousspectrum

consis7ngofformal,tangibleen77es(e.g.,banks,governmentagencies,courts)atoneendandless

formal/tradi7onal,intangiblephenomena(e.g.,customs,norms,andvalues)attheother.Thefull

spectrummaybedepictedasinFigure1.

Thecons3tu3ve,regula3ve,andassocia3veins7tu7onswereiden7fiedthroughareviewof

secondarydataandanalysisofinterviewswithkeyinformants.Preliminaryinforma7ononthe

cogni3veandbehavioralins7tu7onswascollectedthroughinterviewsandfocusgroupdiscussions.

Theapplica7onoftheinnova7onsystemframeworkinconjunc7onwiththetypologyinFigure1was

basedonthefollowingtwokeyassump7ons.First,ascircumstanceschangeandasactorslearn,roles

evolve,newins7tu7ons(bothformalandinformal)canemergewhileolderins7tu7onscanundergo

transforma7on.Second,therela7veimportanceofactorsis7me-andcontext-specificandcanchangeasaresultofchangesexogenoustotheactorsimmediateopera7ngenvironments.

10


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Figure1:Characteris?csandManifesta?onsofIns?tu?ons

Behavioral

Ins7tu7onsas

standardized

(recognizable)social

habitsmanifestin

deeplyingrained

behaviorofindividuals

andgroupsas

reflec7onsofsocial

norms

Cogni?ve

Ins7tu7onsasmental

modelsandconstructs

ordefini7ons,based

onvaluesand

embeddedinculture

aspiredtoby

individualsandgroups

Associa?ve

Ins7tu7onsas

mechanisms

facilita7ngprescribed

orprivileged

interac7onamong

differentprivateand

publicinterests

manifestinac7vi7esof

groupsofindividuals

Regula?ve

Ins7tu7onsas

prescrip7onsand

proscrip7ons

manifestasthe

immediateboundaries

ofac7onbyindividuals

andgroups

Cons?tu?ve

Ins7tu7onssengthe

boundsofsocial

rela7onsmanifestas

theul7mate

boundariesofac7on

byindividualsand

groups

Tradi7onal/Informal;

SocialFormal;Societal

AdaptedfromParto(200 8)

Indatagathering,par7culara`en7onwaspaidtotheins7tu7onsthroughwhichtheagriculturalproduc7onsystemhasbeentradi7onallygoverned.Equally,inventorywastakenofthestructural

changesthathavebeenini7atedtorevivetheagriculturesectorsince2001.Muchofthedata

u7lizedforthispartofthestudywasfromsecondarysourcesandtheproductofearlierandongoing

research.Thisinforma7onwassupplemented(inthecaseofthesaffronvaluechain)withaddi7onal

interviewswithkeyinformantsandfocusgroupmee7ngswithfarmerstoqualita7velyexplorethe

dynamicsoftradi7onalins7tu7onsandthechanges,ifany,duetothestructuralchangesintroduced

since2001.

Toensurepolicyrelevancy,consulta7onsweremadewithkeyrepresenta7vesfromgovernment

ministriesandagencies(e.g.,theMinistryofWomensAffairs;theMinistryofAgriculture,Irriga7on

andLivestock[MAIL];MinistryofEconomy)andfromna7onalandinterna7onalagenciesand

organiza7onsengaged,ormandatedtobeengaged,ingendermainstreamingintheagriculture

sector.

5.TheValueChains

Thissec7onprovidesabriefdescrip7onforeachofthethreevaluechains.

5.1Grape/RaisinValueChain

ThegrapeandraisinvaluechainisAfghanistansmostimportant(licit)hor7culturalvaluechain.44%

ofallAfghanfarmersgrowgrapes,aclearindica7onofhowimportantthislabor-intensivecropisto

Afghanistanslivelihoodsandruraleconomies.Around520,000metrictonsofgrapesaregrowneach

year,makinggrapesAfghanistanslargesthor7culturalcrop.10Apartfromtheexcessivelyhotclimates

aroundNangarharandNimruz,grapesaregrownwidely,butareasaroundKandahar,Kabul,Parwan,

JawzjanandHeratprovidethebulkofthegrapeandraisinproduc7on.

11

_____________________________________________________________________________________

10AltaiConsul7ng(2004).MarketSectorAssessmentinHor7culture-Iden7fica7onofBusinessOpportuni7es,availableat:

h`p://altaiconsul7ng.com/hor7culture-reports.html.


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While20-30%ofthetotalcropproduc7onishistoricallydomes7callyconsumed,largevolumesare

exportedinfreshordriedform.11GrapesearnAfghanistanaround$15millioninofficialexports,

represen7ngaround40%ofallfreshfruitexportearnings,andraisinsareAfghanistanssinglemost

importantexport,earningaround$100million,equivalenttoaround40%ofdriedfruitandnut

exports.12Thesefiguresarelikelytounderstateexportsconsiderably,astradewithAfghanistansregionalpartnersgoeslargelyunrecorded.Duetolackofacoldchain,freshgrapesarerarely

exportedbeyondPakistan,IndiaandIran.Raisins,however,aremuchlessperishableandhavethe

poten7altobemorewidelyexported.In193Afghanistanwastheworldsthirdlargestexporterof

raisinsbehindTurkeyandGreece,evenexpor7ng0metrictonstothedemandingUKmarket.13

Afghanistansposi7onasafreshgrapeexporteriscurrentlyweak,represen7ngjust0.1%ofthe

worldvolumes.Raisinexportsremainstrongthoughproduc7onqualityrequirementsinthe

developedworldhaveexceededAfghancapabili7es.CurrentlythemajorityofAfghanraisinsare

exportedtoRussia(35%),Pakistan(34%)andIndia(21%).Foracountrysooênattheboòmof

indicatorlistsitissurprisingtoseethatAfghanistanastheworldsseventhlargestexporterofraisins,

responsiblefor3.4%oftheworldstradedvolume.14Theraisinvaluechainisrecognizedasavery

a`rac7vedevelopmentopportunity,withinterven7onsofferinghigh-incomepoten7alintheshort

term.15

5.1.1WomenandGrape/RaisinValueChain

Theraisinvaluechainhasonefundamentalac7vitythatinvolveswomen,thatofsor7ngofraisinsto

removebadraisinsordebris.Thismaybeaccompaniedbyothertaskssuchaspackagingtheraisins.

Sor7ngoccurseitherinthekishmishkhane(grapedryinghouse),athome,atthebazaar,orthe

kishmishpaki(raisincleaningopera7on).Thisworkisgiventowomenbythemaleactorsinthe

supplychainasitinvolvesminimalliîngandminimalinterac7onwithother(male)supplychain

actors.Tasksinvolvingmovingheavyvolumesofgrapesorboxesofraisinsareundertakenbymen.Thevalueoftheworkisbelowmenssalarythreshold,andthusisle^towomentoperform.The

kishmishpakischargearound$25tocleanametrictonofraisins,whichallowsthemtopaythe

femalestaffnomorethanaround$80to$140permonth.16Inthekishmishkhane,athomeorthe

bazaarthefemalelaborersarelikelyrela7vesofthefarmerorwholesaler,inwhichcasetheywork

forli`leornomoney.

Theplaceofwomeninthegrape/raisinvaluechainissubjecttoanumberoffactors.First,women

donotgenerallygetinvolvedintheharves7ngorhaulingofgrapesandraisins.Assuchtheyare

physicallyseparatedfromdecisionmakingonsaleoftheproductanddecisionmakingonmarke7ng.

Second,womenareisolatedfromthesupplychainactorsaroundthem.Decisionsondealswith

buyersarealwaysmadebymen,partlybecauseofreal/perceivedilliteracyorinnumeracyofthewomen.Thisresultsinverylowvisibilityofthewomeninthevaluechainandlackofaccessby

womentoinforma7ononthedynamicsofthesupplychainandthevariousavailableextension

servicesatdifferentstagesofproduc7onincludinginputs,processing,andtransporta7on.Third,

unlikeotherfruitexports,thebulkraisinexportindustryhascometorelyonapar7cularand

expensiveprocessingequipment.Womenarelesslikelytohavethemoneytopurchaseexpensive

equipmentandthusarefurtherpreventedfrombreakingintothetradingstageofthevaluechain.

12

_____________________________________________________________________________________

11Ghafor,A.(194).ProspectsfortheDevelopmentofGrapeProduc3onandMarke3nginAfghanistan. (Kabul:USAID).

12CentralSta7s7calOffice(2009),availableat:h`p://www.cso.gov.af/index.htmlandUNComtrade(2009),availableat:

h`p://comtrade.un.org/db/.

13Ghafor,A.(194).

14UNComtrade(2009).

15Maani,R.(2003).Priori3zingExportOpportuni3esforHor3cultureinAfghanistan (Davis:UniversityofCalifornia).

16AltaiConsul7ng(2004).
http://www.cso.gov.af/index.htmlhttp://www.cso.gov.af/index.htmlhttp://comtrade.un.org/db/http://comtrade.un.org/db/http://comtrade.un.org/db/http://comtrade.un.org/db/http://www.cso.gov.af/index.htmlhttp://www.cso.gov.af/index.html


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MostofthefocusintheAfghangrapeandraisinvaluechainhasbeenonthehor7culturalac7vi7es

inthegrapepor7onofthevaluechain.1Therehavebeeninterven7onsaimedatimprovementin

aabiandkishmishdryingprocesses,industrialcleaning,andhigh-valuemarketlinking,thoughvery

fewhavehadastatedgenderfocus.

5.2AlmondValueChain

Almondsarena7vetoAfghanistan,andcomeinmanyvarie7esofgenerallyhighquality.Theyhave

beencommerciallyexportedfordecadesandareoneofAfghanistansmainsourcesofagricultural

revenue.Themajorproduc7onloca7onsareinParwan,Balkh,Kunduz,andSamanganprovincesof

theNorthandKandaharandUruzganprovincesintheSouth.

AccordingtointerviewswithofficialsfromtheMinistryofRuralRehabilita7onandDevelopment

(MRRD)Afghanistanproducedanes7mated15,000metrictonsofalmondsin2008/09.Itislikely

thatthisfigureunderstatesalmondproduc7onintheSouthduetothelackofrepresenta7onofandaccesstofarmers.Almondproduc7onwases7matedat42,000metrictonsin2008,asteeprise

comparedto2006,foracul7vatedareaof12,000hectares.18ThismakesAfghanistanthe11thlargest

producerintheworld,withayieldperhectaregreaterthanCalifornia.Itismorelikelythattheyield

ismuchlower,butthecul7vatedareamuchgreater.AsurveybytheUniversityofCaliforniaatDavis

es7matedthecul7vatedareaforalmondsinAfghanistanatover34,000hectaresinKandaharand

theNorthalone.OtherresearchinUruzganprovincefoundthatproduc7ontherewaslikelytobe

over20,000metrictons.Extrapola7ngthisnumberalongthelinesofthesurveyin2003byFAO

wouldleadtoana7onalannualproduc7onof0,000metrictonsattheveryleast.

Globalproduc7onofalmondsises7matedat1.milliontons,butmuchofitisconsumedlocally.The

UnitedStatesisbyfarthelargestexporterintheworldwithmorethan80%oftheworldsmarket.

The56,000metrictonses7matewouldmakeAfghanistanthesecondlargestalmondexporterandwellaheadofAustraliaasanothermajorexporter.Indiaisthelargestimporterofin-shellalmonds,

whileshelledalmondsaremoreequallypurchasedaroundtheworldwithWesternEurope

(Germany,Spain,France,Italy)represen7ngabout0%oftheglobalimports.19Together,Indiaand

Pakistanimportabout50%ofAfghanistanstotalalmondexports.20ExportstoIndiaarepartly

channeledthroughPakistan,however,andaccordingtoAfghantradersasignificantpartofin-shell

almondsisexportedtoIndiaaêrbeingshelledinPakistan.

5.2.1WomeninAlmondValueChain

Womenareinvolvedextensivelyintheearlystagesofthealmondvaluechain.Theywaterandweedtheorchards,harvest,cleananddry,andpackthealmondsinlargesacksintheorchards.Aêrthat

stagefemaleinvolvementiseffec7velylimitedtobeinghiredasmanuallaborersbylargetradersto

shellalmondsbyhand.Thereareafewwomen-ownedandoperateddried-fruits-and-nutstrading

companies,mainlyinandaroundKabul.Thesecompanieshirefemalesalesagentsandvillage

13

_____________________________________________________________________________________

1Theseac7vi7esaredominatedbyUSAID-fundedprograms,e.g.,IDEA-NEW,AVIPA,CHAMP,ASAP(successortoRAMP),

ADPandALP.TheWorldBanksHLPandtheEUsPALalsomakesignificantcontribu7ons.Ac7vi7esareoênfocusedon

introducingtrellising,vineyardmanagement(e.g.,fer7lizerapplica7on,gibberellicacidapplica7on,pestmanagement),

harves7ngandpost-harvestproceduralimprovements,marketlinkingandevensecondaryindustriessuchasgrape

juiceproduc7on.TheAfghanWomensBusinessCouncilsupportstheASAPprojectbygrading,sor7ngandpacking

fruits(includinggrapes)attheBadamBaghPackHouse.

18SeeFAO(2004).Afghanistan:SurveyoftheHor3cultureSector200(Rome:FAO).

19UNComtrade(2009).

20CentralSta7s7calOffice(2009).


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traderstopurchasealmondsdirectlyfromfemaleproducers.Someofthesefemaletradersareeven

involvedatthewholesale,processing,andexportstageofthevaluechain.Overallfemale

par7cipa7onintradingremainsverysmall,however,evenasthenumberoffemalevillagetraders

andsalesagentsisincreasing.Meninthealmondvaluechain,justasintheraisinchain,actasthe

linkbetweenthehouseholdandmarket,purchasinginputs,sellingalmondstomiddlemen/village-leveltraders,ortravelingtothelocalmarkettosell.Womensrolesinthealmondvaluechainare

limitedbymoreorlessthesameconstraintsasinthegrape/raisinvaluechain.Thekeyconstraintis

therestric7vesocialnormsthatlimitwomensaccesstoservices,informa7on,transporta7on,and

financing.

TheAfghanalmondsectorhasbeenresearchedandassistedthoroughlythroughinterven7onsfrom

theEuropeanUnion-fundedPerennialHor7cultureDevelopmentProgram(PHDP),forexample,to

classifyandexperimentwithalmondvarie7esthroughtheestablishmentofana7onalcollec7on

system,par7cularlyinKunduzandMazar-eSharif,andanetworkofhor7culturalresearchand

trainingfarmsthroughoutthecountry.Otherresearchinterven7onshavebeenini7atedbyRootsof

PeaceandMAIL.

Themainfocusforinterven7onsinthesectorhasbeentoimprovethecapacityofthenurseries.

ThereareanumberofnurseryprogramsthroughMAILandincollabora7onsbetweenMAILand

interna7onaldonorssuchastheWorldBank,FAO,andUSAID.Otherareasofinterven7oninclude

aèmptstoimproveprocessingandpackaging,iden7fyingcommercialsideproductssuchasalmond

oilextractedfrombièralmonds,andmarke7ng.

5.3SaffronValueChain

Apartfromitsculinaryandcosme7csusessaffronhaspoten7allybeneficialmedicalusesas

anodyne,an7spasmodic,aphrodisiac,diaphore7c,emmenagogue,expectorant,andseda7ve.21Theplanthasbeenusedasafolkremedyagainstscarletfever,smallpox,colds,insomnia,asthma,

tumors,andcanceranditscoloringeffecthasbeenfoundincaveartworkfrompre-historic

communi7esda7ngback50,000years.Un7lrela7velyrecentlysaffronwaswidelyusedasadyein

fabricsandwoolforcarpetweaving.Asaspicesaffronhasbeentradedforabout5,000years.22

Todaysaffronisthemostexpensivespiceandhasbeencomparedtogoldandopiumforitsvalueby

weight.

Saffrongrowingishighlyprofitableandecologicallysuitedtothearidgrowingcondi7onsprevalentin

westernandnorthwesternAfghanistan.Saffronisdrieds7gmasofcrocussa3vus,atypeofcrocus.

Theplantdoesnotcompeteagainstothercropsforirriga7onandlabor(despitebeingpar7cularly

labor-intensive)astheharves7ng7me,around2-3weeksinOctobereachyear,occursaêrmostothercropshavebeenharvested.TheecologyofnumerouspartsofAfghanistan,par7cularlyin

flaèrandmorearidareaswithsomeaccesstowatersuchasHerat,aresuitableforplan7ngsaffron.

Duringtheharves7ngtheflowersarehandpickedandcarriedofftohavetheirs7gmasremovedand

driedtoproducesaffron.

Theplantrequiresminimalfer7liza7on.Throughoutitsgrowingprocessitneedstwoirriga7ons,a

greatadvantageinageographicareasufferingfromageneralscarcityofwaterpar7cularlyforthe

manysmallholdingfarmers.Inaddi7on,growingsaffrondoesnotcarrywithittheburdenofsin,

14

_____________________________________________________________________________________

21Abdulaev(2002).Cancerchemopreven7veandtumoricidalproper7esofsaffron(Crocussa7vusL.).ExpBiologyand

Medicine,22(1):20-25.

22Interna7onalCenterforAgriculturalResearchinDryAreas(ICARDA)(200).Caravan(24),June200,availableat:h`p://

www.icarda.org/Publica7ons/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htm
http://www.icarda.org/Publications/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htmhttp://www.icarda.org/Publications/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htmhttp://www.icarda.org/Publications/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htmhttp://www.icarda.org/Publications/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htmhttp://www.icarda.org/Publications/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htmhttp://www.icarda.org/Publications/Caravan/Caravan24/Focus_4.htm


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o^enassociatedwithgrowingpoppiesandmarijuana,bymostinterpretersofIslamicteachings.

Producingakilogramofdriedsaffronrequires150,000to10,000flowersandaround400hoursof

labor.AccordingtothefarmersinHerat,ajeribofland(onefi^hofahectareor2,000square

meters)yieldsopiumworth$400-600,whilethesamelandareacanproduce1-3Kilogramsof

saffronworth$2,000-3,000perKilogram.Annualglobalsaffronproduc7onisaround300tons,ofwhichIranises7matedtoproducebetween90%-94%.Highqualitypackagedsaffronretailsforas

muchas$11,000perkilogramorhigherinWesternmarketswhilerecentyearshavewitnesseda

surgeinthedemand.23OneUS-basedtraderes7matesthedemandintheUnitedStatesaloneat20

tonsperyearatminimum.24

Saffronproduc7onhasincreasedsignificantlyoverthepastfewyearsinAfghanistan.Thereareno

reliableofficialrecordsofAfghanistanstotalsaffronexportsatAfghanistansCentralSta7s7csOffice,

theExportPromo7onAgencyofAfghanistan,orAfghanistanInvestmentSupportAgency.25The

DirectorateofMAILinHerates7matestheproduc7onofsaffronfor2009atover900kilograms.

Limitedquan77esofsaffronhavealsobeenproducedinMaidanWardak,Logar,Kunduzanda

numberofotherprovinces,largelyasanexperimentalcrop.Heratandtheotherwesternprovinces

remainthemainsaffrongrowingregionsofAfghanistan.

Globally,Germany,Italy,theUnitedStates,Switzerland,UK,andFrancearethelargestsaffron

impor7ngcountries.ThemajorproducersofsaffronintheworldareIran,Spain,India,Greece,

Azerbaijan,Morocco,andItaly.26AseniorofficialoftheDirectorateofMAILinHerates7matedthe

areaoflandundersaffroncul7va7onataround212hectares,involvingover1,000farmersandwith

thepoten7altoproducebetween50to0tonsofsaffron.Experts,governmentofficials,andsaffron

tradersallclaimthatAfghansaffronisofthehighestqualitywithapoten7altomakesignificant

inroadsintotheinterna7onalmarket.AccordingtotheDanishCommi`eeforAidtoAfghanRefugees

(DACAAR),a200projectsurveyinHeratprovinceshowedthatover80%offarmersgrowatleast

smallquan77esofsaffroneveryyearforhouseholduse.Thesurveyalsoreportedthatabout1,100

farmersinAfghanistangrewsaffron.2

AccordingtothemaintradersinHeratandofficialsfromMAILandNGOofficialsinterviewedforthis

study,Afghanprocessedsaffronisexportedatapriceofaround$5,500tocountriessuchasIran,

India,UnitedArabEmirates,Pakistan,UnitedStates,andEurope.ExportsofAfghansaffrontothe

AmericanandEuropeanmarketstakesplacethroughtransitloca7onssuchasIranorDubai,which

usuallybrandtheproductasorigina7ngfromthosecountries.

5.3.1WomeninSaffronValueChain

Alargeamountoftheworktoproducesaffron,upto80%accordingtoes7matesprovidedbykeyinformantsinterviewedforthisstudy,isdonebywomenwhohelpinlandprepara7onandplan7ng,

harves7ngtheflowers,extrac7ngthesaffronfromtheflowers,batching,drying,andsome7mes

packing.Recognizingthis,numerousdonor-fundedprojectsaredesignedtocreateanenabling

15

_____________________________________________________________________________________

23SeeDACAAR(200).WholesaleandretailSaffronpricees7matesvarybetweenUS$1,100andUS$11,000

24EmailexchangewithasaffrontraderbasedinSanFranciscoonJanuary16,2010.

25Majorsaffrontradersshyawayfromrepor7ngthevolumesoftheirtradeandprefertoconductbusinesstransac7ons

informallyandwithoutmuchpublicityviasaffroncarrierswhotransportthefinishedproductinbulkforsalein

interna7onalmarkets.

26SpiceTrade,availableat:h`p://www.spice-trade.com/saffron.htm.

2DACAAR(200).
http://www.spice-trade.com/saffron.htmhttp://www.spice-trade.com/saffron.htmhttp://www.spice-trade.com/saffron.htmhttp://www.spice-trade.com/saffron.htm


18/31

environmentforwomentoreceiveadequatecompensa7onfortheirlabor.Asof200,DACAAR

claimstohavetrainedover250womeninimprovedproduc7onandprocessingmethods.Also,

DACAARhasheldaseriesofwomensmee7ngsandfielddays,andestablishedcommunity-level,

women-onlyfacili7esfordryingsaffron.28

MuchworkhasbeendoneinrecentyearstoestablishsaffronasstablecropinAfghanistan.TheSaffronProgrammebytheInterna7onalCenterforAgriculturalResearchintheDryAreas(ICARDA)

hasbeenfundedbytheUnitedKingdomsDepartmentforInterna7onalDevelopment(DfID)andis

runjointlywithMAIL,theResearchforAlterna7veLivelihoodFund(RALF)ProgrammebyDACAAR,

WashingtonStateUniversity,andCatholicReliefServices.TheProgrammehasengagedtheMinistry

ofCounterNarco7cs,FAO,otherNGOs,anddonoragenciesinprovidingdirectassistancetothe

farmersandorganizingworkshopsandotherforums.

Inthecourseofthisstudy,twowomensproducerassocia7onsfromHeratwhohadbeenassistedby

DACAARwereinterviewedonanumberofoccasionsaboutsaffronproduc7oningeneraland

barrierstowomensa emptstomoveupthevaluechaininpar7cular.TheAssocia3onofWomen

SaffronProducersofPashtunZarghoon,foundedin2005,has121registeredfemalemembersandonemalemember.TheAssocia7onhasreceivedfinancialassistancefromtheWorldBankand

saffronbulbs,dryers,andanelectricgeneratorfromDACAAR.DACAARalsoprovidesguidanceand

traininginsaffronproduc7on.AllfemaleheadsofthePashtunZarghoonAssocia7onareilliterate

exceptfortwowhohavesomereadingandwri7ngskillsacquiredatthemosque.Thesecond

associa7on,Associa3onofWomenSaffronProducersofGhoryan,wasfoundedin200andhas2

permanentmembers,25temporarymembers,andnon-memberfemaleassociates.TheGhoryan

Associa7onhasreceivedbulbs,dryers,officesupplyandfurniture,packagingfund,andtrainingfrom

theItalianProvincialReconstruc7onTeam(PRT),ICARDA,USAID/ASMED,theWorldBank,and

SanayeeDevelopmentOrganiza7on(SDO).

Therela7vesuccessofthetwowomensassocia7onsaretoalargeextenta`ributabletotheworkof

DACAARwhichhasprovidedthebulbsandtraining,andconductedresearchincul7va7onmethods,

processing,andmarke7ngofsaffron.Ithasalsofacilitatedthefoundingoffourgrowerassocia7ons

(includingthetwoassocia7onsdescribedabove),theestablishmentoflinksbetweenthe

associa7onsandinterna7onalbuyers,na7onalconferencesonsaffroninAfghanistan,andthe

crea7onofthefirstqualitycontrollaboratoryforsaffroninHerat,nowrunbytheprovincial

departmentofMAIL.Aconferencein2006resultedinthecrea7onoftheNa7onalSaffron

Coordina7onandSupportCommi`ee,ledbyMAIL,tocoordinatetheworkofdifferentministries

andresearchins7tu7onsonissuessuchasproduc7onmethods,qualitystandards,importandexport

regula7on,andmarke7ng.DACAARsworkonthesectorsince1998ishasbeentheonlyconsistent

efforttomainstreamsaffronproduc7onandwomensroleasakeypartofthatprocess.

Inasimilarvein,ICARDA/DACAARprovidesacomprehensivelistofproblemsandconstraintsconfrontedbythenascentsector(Box1).29Thismanualforsaffronproduc7ongoesbeyondits

primaryintentofbeingahow-toguidebyspeakingauthorita7velyandbasedonmanyyearsof

experiencetoanumberofissuesrelevanttothesectorincludingthesuitabilityofthecroptothe

ecologicalcondi7onsinAfghanistan,interna7onalproductstandards,marke7ngstrategies,priori7es

forthedevelopmentofthesector,inputcostsandrevenuesfromsaffronproduc7on,andrela7vely

current(200)prices.Amajoromissioninthisvaluableresourcebookisadiscussionofthe

governanceofthesaffronchain,theinequi7esofwhicharelikelytofrustrateini7a7vesbywomento

moveupthevaluechainandbythegovernmentanddonoragenciestostrengthenthesectorina

gender-equitablemanner.

16

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28ICARDA/DACAAR(2008).SaffronManualforAfghanistan.Availableat:www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdf

29ICARDA/DACAAR(2008).
http://www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdfhttp://www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdfhttp://www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdfhttp://www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdfhttp://www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdfhttp://www.icarda.org/Ralfweb/PDFs/SaffronManualForAfghanistan.pdf


19/31

Box1:SummaryofkeyproblemsandconstraintsforsaffronfarmersinAfghanistan

Marke?ngofAfghanproduct- Afghansaffronisunrecognizedandunbrandedinthe

market;mostgoesthroughIranianchannels.However,

thereisstronginterestamongstinterna7onalbuyers

(par7cularlyHolland,USA,AustraliaandItaly)toprocure

Afghansaffron,providedaguaranteeofqualitycanbe

assured.- Lackofqualityassurancesforinterna7onalbuyers(no

ISOcompliance)- Lackofknowledgeofmarketdynamics,pricingstructures

andmarke7ngapproaches(strongneedfordetailed

study)- Lackofskillsinmarke7ng- Lackofcompe77onamongstAfghanexporters

Lackofproduc?oncapacity- Producersneedtobeorganizedinlocal,provincialand

na7onalassocia7onstoimprovetheiraccesstotechnicalsupport

- Lackofregula7ononcormimports.Farmershaveno

trainingtoiden7fygoodqualityleavingthemvulnerable

topurchasingbadqualitycorms.Withoutthisbasic

training,growingsaffronbecomeshighriskinvestmentas

farmersmaylosetheirini7alinvestment.- Highpricesandlowavailabilityofcorm.Theincreasing

interestincormhasledtoanar7ficialincreaseincorm

prices.CurrentinvestmentsneededarearoundUSD

$5,000perhectarewhichisprohibi7velyexpensivefor

manyfarmers.Cormbanksandsubsidizedcorm

schemesshouldbeusedtoimprovethissitua7on.- Lackofgovernmentsupport.Someorganiza7onsare

impor7ngcormfromIranratherthanpurchasingfrom

Afghanfarmersathigherprices- Becauseofthestrongdemandforcorm,somefarmers

arenowmakingshorttermgainsbyproducingcorm

ratherthanproducingsaffron.Thisisimpac7ngthe

horizontalexpansionoftheindustry,which,ifle^

unregulated,mayleadtoreduc7onsinoverallproduc7on

iffarmersremainuntrainedoncormquality.- Farmersthataregivencormbysomeorganiza7onsmay

notbetrainedsufficientlyinitscul7va7on,par7cularlyin

bedprepara7on(raisedbeds),rowspacing,7mely

irriga7onoradequatefer7liza7on.- Moretrainingisneededforfarmersintheareaofpost-

harvestmanagement.Thisisakeyissue,asmostprocessinganddryingisconductedatavillagelevel.

InequitableChainGovernance- Themaintraderstendtoconsciouslyundermine

ini7a7vesbywomensassocia7onsandsmallerproducers

tomoveupthevaluechainbycrea7ngcondi7onsfor

unfaircompe77on.

Lackofindustrystandards- Farmersarenotawareoftheinterna7onalstandardsfor

qualityandhygienerequiredforsellingproducedirectly

tointerna7onalcustomers.- Agradingsystembasedonqualityneedstobe

established- Unlessqualitystandardsareaddressedquicklythe

privatesectorisunlikelytomoveintoAfghanproduc7on

andestablishitself.

Lackoflocalstorageorpackagingcapacity- Lackofpackagingequipmentfororganizingconsignments

tointerna7onalmarkets.Ithasbeenproventhatprices

fluctuateaccordingtotheseasonforinstance,prices

arehighestjustpriortoharvest(uptoUSD$8,000per

kilogram).Withoutadequatepackagingtostoresaffron

orpackageitinsmalla`rac7vepackages,localexporters

cannotaddmaximumvaluetothefinalproductortakeadvantageofpricespecula7on.

- Keyproblemscitedaretheexpenseofindustrial

packagingmachines,capableofproducingthenecessary

packagesneededforthewesternmarkets.Partnerships

mayneedtobedevelopedwithdonorsandtheprivate

sectortoestablishapackagingfactory.Current

produc7onlevelsarelikelytobetoosmallforlocalized

investment.

Coordina?onbetweenallindustrystakeholders- Morecoordina7onisneededbetweenallvaluechain

actorsinthesaffronindustry.Currentmarketoutlooks

showthatforeigncompaniesarebeginningprivatesector

opera7onswithinHerat,andthatChinaisnowmoving

intosaffronproduc7on.ItisclearthattheAfghan

industrywillunlikelybeabletocompeteinthis

environmentunlessitorganizesitselfinarela7velyshort

7meframe.Firstweshouldestablishaprovincialand

na7onallevelSaffronPromo7onalCentreandorganize

theindustryintomoreassocia7ons.Secondly,

Afghanistanshouldcoordinateregularmee7ngsbetween

interestedstakeholdergroupsandfinally,coordina7on

shouldbeestablishedbetweenprovincialandNa7onal

levelcoordina7oncommi`ees.

Shortageofwomenextensionspecialists

- Promo7ngsaffronisaprac7calwaytoempowerwomeninaconserva7vesociety,buildingontheirskillsand

tradi7onalroles,toincreaseincomesandencourageself-

reliance.Thereareinsufficientfemaleextensionworkers

toworkwithwomen.

Source:AdaptedfromICARDA/DACAAR(2008)

1


20/31

6.KeyFindings

6.1Evalua?onofGrape/RaisinValueChain

ConsideringtheimportanceoftheraisinvaluechaintoAfghanistan,interven7onstodevelopand

strengthenthissectorappeartohavebeensecondedtointerven7onsinthemoreglamorous

hor7culturalvaluechains.Thisisunfortunate.Althoughthevaluechainisveryinefficient,thebulk

exportofmedium-qualityaabiraisinstoRussiaisAfghanistansbiggest(legi7mate)industry,and

employeroflargenumberofwomen.Interven7onsinthebulkaabiraisinmarketandthespecialty

kishmishraisinmarketscouldsubstan7allyimproveAfghanistansposi7onintheglobalmarket.No

interven7onstodatehaveastrongwomenscomponentbydesign,exceptperhapstwosmallbut

significantinterven7onsbyMercyCorpsGlobalDevelopmentAlliance(GDA)andMEDAsAfghan

PrideAssocia7on(APA).

GDAoperatesinKandaharandParwanprovincestosupportgrape,raisin,andpomegranatevalue

chains.IthasdistributedlocallywovenmatstofarmersinParwanfordryinggrapes.Theproduc7onofthemats,whichlastforthreeseasons,hasproventohaveacommercialpoten7alwithstrong

femaleinvolvement.30APAisafruitandnutprocessingcentreoperatedby200women.Thecenter

caterstohigh-endhotelsandownstworetailshops.Produceispurchaseddirectlyfromfemale

producers,althoughtheysome7messourceaddi7onalproducefromthewholesalemarket.APAis

alsosenguplocalcollec7onanddryingcenters,equippedwithsolardryerstoproduceraisins

withoutanydustordirt.31

GDAsmat-weavingschemeisanexci7ngauxiliarysupportprojectinthegrape/raisinvaluechain

andcouldbeexpandedinconjunc7onwithotherraisinprojects.Thespecialtymarketisaverysmall

andcompe77vemarket,requiringsubstan7alandsustainedprogramsupporttolinkwomens

groupswithhotelsoroverseasbuyers.Somewomenemployedinthespecialtymarket(likethewomenthroughAPA),arelikelytoexperiencehigherdegreesofempowermentanddecision-making

responsibilitythanemployeesinthebulkraisinprocessingmarket.However,tobuildonthegains

madesofarinmainstreamingwomeninthegrape/raisinvaluechain,muchmoreneedstobedone

toimprovethecompe77veness,marketlinkages,andthesizeofthemarketsforbothgrapesand

raisinsthroughsustainedandinnova7veinterven7onssuchasGDAandAPA.

Supportinprocessinginthegrape/raisinvaluechaincouldbeprovidedthroughrenova7ngclosed

kishmishpakisoriden7fyingkishmishpakiswithentrepreneurialmanagersandprovidingthemwith

mentorstoimprovequality.Financialsupportcouldbeofferedfornewequipment,par7cularlyhot

waterwashingsystemsandscannersfordetec7ngmetalintheraisins,togetherwithemployeeskills

trainingandupgradingtoworktowardsphytosanitaryandHACCPcer7ficates.32Effortsshouldbe

madetoworkwiththeAfghanistanChamberofCommerceandIndustries(ACCI)andtheExportPromo7onAgencyofAfghanistan(EPA)tocer7fyproduc7onandiden7fynewmarkets.

Improvementsinkishmishpakiopera7onsarelikelytoleadtocrea7nghighervalueandhigher

volumemarketswithmoreopportuni7estoemploywomen.Innova7veinterven7onssuchas

providingmatsforgrapedryingwillfacilitatecleanerproduc7onmethodswhilecrea7ngademand

forthematswovenbywomenandusinglocalmaterial.Thedryingmatscouldalsobeusedin

almondproduc7on.

18

_____________________________________________________________________________________

30NewYorkTimes(2010).

31MEDA(2011).OurWork,Availableat:h`p://www.meda.org/web/our-work/current-programs-and-work.

32ManyEuropeanimportersrequireHazardsAnalysisandCri7calControlPoints(HACCP)cer7ficatefromtheirsuppliers.
http://www.meda.org/web/our-work/current-programs-and-workhttp://www.meda.org/web/our-work/current-programs-and-workhttp://www.meda.org/web/our-work/current-programs-and-workhttp://www.meda.org/web/our-work/current-programs-and-work


21/31

6.2Evalua?onAlmondValueChain

Thealmondsectorhasbeenthefocusofconcertedeffortsbytheinterna7onaldonorstoimprove

thequalityandquan7tyofproduc7on,includingalargenumberofinterven7onsonaverylarge

scale.Thebulkoftheseinterven7onscanbecharacterizedasclassicagriculturalextension

programmingwithafocusoninputsdistribu7onandsupply-drivenchainswithouttakingproper

accountofmarketdemand.Thedominantmodelforagriculturalextensionworkinhor7culture

demonstra7onorchardshasproventobeveryslowinspreadingnewtechniquesandcultures.

Muchofthisistheresultofthefocusondispersinglargeamountsofcashinrela7velyshort

7meframesandtheinabilityofprogramstotrulyrootthemselvesintherecipientfarmer

communi7es.Theresultisthatwhileproduc7onhasindeedexpandedsignificantly,qualityhas

remainedlargelyunchanged.Thatitcanbedonedifferently,however,isprovenbytherecent

redesignofWorldBanksHor7cultureandLivestockProgram(HLP),whichwasimplementedthrough

changingtheimplementersandresul7nginsignificantincreasesnotonlyinproduc7vitybutalsoin

thepricedifferenceofHLPassistedcropsovermarketprices.33

Thereremainanumberofsignificantchallengesforthealmondvaluechain,however.Bi`eralmonds

ares7llbeingmixedwithsweetoneswhilethedifferencesbetweenalmondvarie7esremainunclear

andinferiorvarie7escon7nuetobewidelycul7vated.Afghanfarmersremainhighlyconserva7ve

whiletradersseemunwillingtochallengefarmerstochangetheirways.Afghanistanthusremains

unabletocontendinthehigh-premiumexportmarkets.Packaging,animportantaspectinmarke7ng

processedagriculturalproducts,remainsamajorchallengeforallAfghanproducersincluding

almondproducers.However,withoutimprovingthequalityofthealmonds,noamountof

sophis7catedpackagingisgoingtoovercomelowquality.Indeed,thereisnotmuchpointin

inves7nginpackagingandhigh-gradecleaningandshellingequipmentifthequalityofthesupplied

almondisnotconsistentandcannotbeguaranteed.Inaddi7on,interven7onstomechanizealmond

processingappeartohavebeeninadequatelyimplemented.Toillustrate,thethreeshellingmachinesinKabul,Mazar-eSharif,andKandaharimportedunderRAMPdidnotworkbecausetheywere

unsuitableforAfghanalmondvarie7es.Thesor7ng/gradingmachinesthatwereimported,

however,arebeingusedextensively.

Thealmondsectors7llstandsoutasoneofthehigh-poten7alsectorsofAfghanistan.PHDPhas

provenrathersuccessfulinbuildingupasustainable,high-qualitynurserystructureandismaking

progressaccordingtoplanwheretheintroduc7onoftrue-to-typealmondvarie7esintothis

structureisconcerned.Iforganiza7onslikeAfghanNa7onalNurseryGrowersOrganiza7on(ANNGO)

andAfghanistanAlmondIndustryDevelopmentOrganiza7on(AAIDO)reallydotakeholdinthe

Afghanalmondsectorandcon7nuetoexpand,moremodernprac7ceswillhaveahigherlikelihood

ofbecomingins7tu7onalized.Severallargetradershavebeenabletoexpandtheiropera7onswhile

capturinghigherpremiums,par7cularlythoseaffiliatedtoAAIDO.S7ll,withoutafargreaterpushtowardsreliablequality,effortstoestablishlinkagestoforeignmarketswilllikelybefrustrated.

Women-orientedac7vi7esarescarceinthealmondvaluechainandexistonlyatthesmallscale.The

APAsoldnomorethan350kilogramsofalmondssourcedfromwomenin2009.HLPhashadsome

successwithwomensinvolvementinthemoreliberalnorthernprovincesofAfghanistan.Ithasbeen

abletomobilize382womenandmeninproducergroups,ofwhich40%arefemale.ThroughRootof

Peace,HLPprovideshor7culturalextensionservicestothesegroupswithoverahundredextension

19

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33WorldBank(2011).Afghanistan:Hor3cultureandLivestockProduc3vityProject,availableat:h`p://

www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=6402221&piPK=6402220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projec7d=P098256.

34WorldBank(2011).
http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256http://www.worldbank.org.af/external/default/main?pagePK=64027221&piPK=64027220&theSitePK=305985&menuPK=306022&Projectid=P098256


22/31

workers,ofwhichover15%arefemale.Deployingthela`erisprovingdifficult,however,because

olderwomentendtohavenoeduca7onwhileyoungwomenhavenofreedomofmovement.34

6.3Evalua?onofSaffronValueChain

Womensroleinthesaffronvaluechainweakensfurtherupthevaluechainandastheworkperformedrequiresmoreinvestmentcapital,businessrela7ons,andculturallysanc7onedfreedom

tomoveandmaneuverinamarketenvironment.Thisstartsatthestagewhenthesaffronistobe

packagedand/orbrandedandisreadytobemarketedandsold.Allthreemajorsaffronbusinessesin

Heratbelongtoandareoperatedbymen.Thisisthestagewherethebalanceofpowerinchain

governanceshi^stowardthemenwhoownlargesaffrontradingenterprises.Womenare

consciouslybarredbythepowerfulsaffronoligopolyfromenteringthemarketandcompe7ngfairly.

Asidefrombeingabsentathigherstagesofthesaffronvaluechain,womenalsogetpaidlessthan

menforthesamework.Forinstance,theownerandCEOofoneofthesaffroncompaniesinHerat

reportedtohavepaidwomen20%lessthanthemenforprocessingsaffronflowersin2008despite

thefactthatwomengenerallydidabe`erjobthanmen.Thegreatestcaseofinequitycanbeobservedinthera7oofworkperformedversustheincomeaccruedtomenandwomenfromthe

value-addingac7vi7es.Whilethegeneralconsensusamongthoseinterviewedwasthatwomendo

mostofthedifficultworkthroughoutthevaluechain,theunstatedfactwasthattheyshared

significantlylessofthevaluegeneratedthroughtheirhardwork.

Saffronproduc7onhasaprovenpoten7altocreatemore,andrela7velylucra7ve,jobsforwomenat

homeandawayfromhomeevenwhentheydonotownland.Thosewhoownfarmlandcan

generatehandsomeprofitsfromgrowingsaffron.Saffronproduc7onrequiresfewerlaborhoursthan

mostcropsandhenceprovidesanopportunityforwomentobecomeinvolvedinotherincome

genera7ngac7vi7essuchasweavingcarpetsandtailoring.

7.AgriculturalInnova?on,Gender,andIns?tu?ons

Thissec7onprovidesasummaryofinterven7onsandinnova7onsforeachofthethreevaluechains.

7.1Grape/Raisin

MostofthefocusintheAfghangrapeandraisinvaluechaininterven7onshasbeenonthe

hor7culturalac7vi7esinthegrapepor7onofthevaluechain.Therela7velyfewerinterven7on

programsrela7ngtoraisinproduc7onincludeaabidrying,kishmishdrying,industrialcleaning,and

high-valuemarketlinking.Veryfewoftheseinterven7onsingrapeandraisinproduc7onhavehada

statedgenderfocus.SeveralNGOshaveworkedtoimprovetheaabidryingprocesswiththe

interven7onstypicallyaimingtoincreasehygieneinproduc7onbydryingfreshgrapesonpaper

sheetsorwovenmats,forexample,insteadofonuncoveredground.TheMercyCorpsGlobal

DevelopmentAlliance(GDA)project,whichoperatesinKandaharandParwanprovinces,supports

grape,raisinandpomegranatevaluechains,hasdistributedlocallywovenmatstofarmersinParwan

forgrapedrying.Theproduc7onofthemats,whichcanbeusedforthreeseasons,offersan

interven7onpoten7alforjobcrea7onandincomegenera7ngopportuni7esforwomen.

20

_____________________________________________________________________________________

35IRIN(2003).Women'sraisinfactoryprovidesjobsinconserva3vesouth, availableat:h`p://irinnews.org/

PrintReport.aspx?ReportID=21385


23/31

In2003theCentralAsianDevelopmentGrouprehabilitatedaraisincleaningopera7oninKandahar

andmanagedtoexportaround450metrictonsofraisinstotheEuropeanmarkets.35GDAhasalso

investedinsimilarprojectsinBagramnearKabul,makingimprovementstothefloors,overallfactory

cleanliness,ligh7ng,andaddingmoreeffec7vewashingopera7ons.Theproductsfromthisplant

meetthehygienestandardsforexportstotheUnitedKingdom.TheTabasomfactoryinKabulhas

installedsimilaropera7onsinpartnershipwithaDanishcompanythoughdoubtshavebeenraisedabouthoweffec7velytheseopera7onsarebeingu7lized.36USAIDsAlterna7veDevelopment

ProgramhaspersistentlytriedtoexportfreshanddriedfruitsthroughtheKandaharFreshandDried

FruitsAssocia7onsandmanagedtoexportsmallquan77esofraisinstoIndia.3

MercyCorpsGDAprogrammeappearstohavebeenthemostsuccessfulraisinmarket-linking

programandhasmanagedtolinkuptheParwanfarmerswiththefemalematproducersand

organizethemintoco-opera7ves.Theco-opera7vesgettheirraisinscleanedattheBagramfactory

withsupportfromGDA.40metrictonsperyearofthefinishedproductissoldtoaBri7shfood

manufacturer,FullwellMills,forfurtherpackaginganddistribu7onintheBri7shmarket.Thereisan

ongoingdrivetogettheco-opera7vescer7fiedbyFLO-CERT(Fairtrade).Also,theMEDATrusthas

beensuppor7ngtheAfghanPrideAssocia7on,afruitandnutprocessingcenterwhichcaterstohigh-endhotelsinKabulandownstworetailshops.38

7.2Almond

Thealmondsectorhasbeenresearchedthoroughly.TheEU-fundedPerennialHor7culture

DevelopmentProgram(PHDP)hasbeenworkingonclassifyingandexperimen7ngwithdifferent

varie7esofalmondthroughtheestablishmentofana7onalcollec7onsystemcenteredonKunduz

andMazarandanetworkofhor7culturalresearchandtrainingfarmsthroughoutthecountry.The

UniversityofCaliforniaatDavis,contractedmostlythroughRootsofPeace,hasacomprehensive

seriesofpublica7onsonbestprac7cesinalmondproduc7oninAfghanistan.RootsofPeacehasjustpublishedacomprehensivecatalogueofalmondvarie7esinAfghanistanwhileMAILhasresearch

anddemonstra7onfarmsaroundAfghanistan.

Thefocusinalltheseini7a7veshasbeenimprovingthequalityofnurseries.Whilethemajorityof

thisworkiscarriedoutthroughtheclassicsupply-drivenapproachandbasedonsubsidizedinput

distribu7on,effortsarebeingmadetoestablishprivatenurseriestooperateonademand-driven

basis.TheMAIL/PHDPproject,ANNGO,forexample,isanetworkofprivatenurseriescollabora7ng

onspreadingthetrue-to-typealmondvarie7esamongAfghanorchards.TheWorldBanksHLP,also

integratedintoMAIL,isorganizingitsnurseryeffortsinasimilarmanner.AAIDOisworkingonthe

integra7onofnurseriesintoitsalmondproduc7on/marke7ngstructure,seekingoutnurseriesto

spreadtheirapproachtoproduc7onaimedatincreasingqualitywithouttrue-to-typeambi7ons.

Thecoreobjec7veformostUSAIDsupportedprograms,e.g,IDEA-NEW,AVIPA,CHAMP,ASAP,and

RAMPhasbeentoestablishbasicproduc7onsystems.Inmanyoftheseini7a7vesRootsofPeaceis

theimplementerofthehor7culturecomponent.HLPisestablishingorchardsonalargescale,mostly

intheNorthernProvinces.Inaddi7ontoPHDP,theEuropeanUnionfundstheProjectforAlterna7ve

Livelihoods(PAL),theonlyprogramofitstypeinEastAfghanistan.PALincludesahor7culture

improvementcomponentwithaninnova7vefocusonbeekeepingassocia7onstoworkalongside

orchardproducers.TheFrenchEmbassyisalsoveryac7veinthisfield,sengupbeekeeping

projectsthatincludetraining,facilita7on,andassocia7onestablishment.Alloftheseprogramshave

anintegratedcapacitybuildingcomponentthroughtrainingondemonstra7onfarms.Radio

21

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36NOWACO(2009).JointVenture.October2009,availableat:h`p://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/ar7cle/joint-venture.html?tx_`news%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e3d

3RootsofPeace(200).PerennialCropSupportProgramKandahar:FinalReport (Kandahar:RootsofPeace).

38MEDA(2011).
http://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37dhttp://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37dhttp://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37dhttp://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37dhttp://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37dhttp://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37dhttp://www.nowaco.com/nyheder/article/joint-venture.html?tx_ttnews%5BbackPid%5D=6&cHash=2a3151e37d


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associa7ons,ifinexistence.Farmerscanreceivearound200kilogramsofbulbsfor100hectaresof

landorinsmallerquan77esforlessland.Pes7cidesorherbicidesarenottypicallyusedinsaffron

farming.

TradingsaffronbulbshasbeenprimarilyamensjobinAfghanistan.Womenareinvolvedinbulbtradebutonlyasbuyersorreceivers.Representa7vesfromtheAssocia7onofWomenSaffron

ProducersofGhoryanandtheAssocia7onofWomenSaffronProducersofPashtunZarghoon,bothin

Heratandinterviewedforthisstudy,saidthattheyhavereceivedlimitedquan77esofsaffronbulbs

fromNGOsundertheabovemen7onedcondi7ons.Theassocia7onsdistributethebulbsamongtheir

membersforplan7ngontheirindividualfarms.Alargeamountoftheworktoproducesaffronis

donebywomenwhohelpinlandprepara7onandplan7ng,harves7ngtheflowers,extrac7ngthe

saffronfromtheflowers,batching,drying,andsome7mespackaging.Recognizingthis,numerous

donor-fundedprojectsaredesignedtocreateanenablingenvironmentforwomentoreceive

adequatecompensa7onfortheirlabor.Asof200,DACAARclaimstohavetrainedover250women

inimprovedproduc7onandprocessingmethods.Also,DACAARhasheldaseriesofwomens

mee7ngsandfielddays,andestablishedcommunity-level,women-onlyfacili7esfordryingsaffron.40

MuchworkhasbeendoneinrecentyearstoestablishsaffronasastablecropinAfghanistan.The

SaffronProgrambyICARDAisrunjointlywithMAIL,theResearchforAlterna7veLivelihoodFund

(RALF)ProgrammebyDACAAR,WashingtonStateUniversity,andCatholicReliefServices.The

ProgramhasalsoengagedtheMinistryofCounternarco7cs,FAO,otherNGOs,anddonoragenciesin

providingdirectassistancetothefarmersandorganizingworkshopsandotherforums.

8.ConclusionsandRecommenda?ons

Alargepor7onofraisins,almond,andsaffronproducedinAfghanistanislikelytocon7nuetobe

poorlyprocessedorshippedinbulktoothercountriesforfurtherprocessingandpackaging.Inpart

thisisduetoagenerallackofaccesstosufficientandadequatestoragefacili7esandproduc7on,

processing,andtransporta7oninfrastructure.Theimpactofinadequateinfrastructureis

compoundedbyotherfactorssuchaslackofdirectaccesstoglobalmarkets,inadequateregulatory

framework,poorlyfunc7oningministriesandcross-ministerialbodies,andalackofruleoflawand

security.Themosteffec7vewaytominimizetheimpactfromthesefactorsandtoensurecashflowis

toexportproduceandproductsasquicklyandasconvenientlypossible.Thiso^enresultsinselling

insufficientlyorinadequatelyprocessedproduceandunfinishedproductstointermediarycountries

forfurtherprocessingandvalue-addingac7vi7es,therewardsforwhichgotoothercountries.41

FormanyAfghanproducerssellingunder-processedgoodsisthemostconvenientwayofcapitalizing

ontheirlaborandinvestmentwithouthavingtoworryaboutthefinishandqualityofthefinalproduct.Thisisunderstandablesinceins7tu7nginterna7onallyrecognizedqualityandhygiene

standardsisafunc7onofhavingthestandardsinplaceand,mostimportantly,havingthestandards

recognizedbytheenduserinothercountries.Suchrecogni7ontakes7me,however,requiring

pa7ence,persistence,andlonger-termperspec7ves,whichtendnottobefeaturesofentrepreneurs

opera7nginconflictsitua7onsorinterna7onaldonorprogramsfocusedonexitstrategiesinshort

order.Giventhissitua7on,itisrealis7ctoexpectthattheproduc7onsophis7ca7onnecessaryfor

becomingcontendersintheglobalmarketswillremainadistantprospectfortheoverwhelming

majorityofAfghanproducersandexporters.Thissaid,rela7velystraighorwardinterven7onssuch

astrainingonsepara7ngthedifferentvarie7esofalmondforgradinganduse,i.e.,sweetversus

23

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40ICARDA/DACAAR(2008).

41Thisphenomenonisalsoobservableincarpetmakingwherevastquan77esofcarpetareshipped,uncutandunwashed,

toadjacentcountriesforfurtherprocessingandsellingathigherpricesandasproductsnotorigina7ngfromAfghanistan.


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bièralmonds,gradingdifferenttypesofraisin,andintroduc7onofmechanizeddryingforsaffron

canbeintensifiedtogeneratesomevalue-addingac7vi7esinthethreevaluechainsexaminedfor

thisresearch.

Abroaderinterven7onpossibilityisfortheGovernmentofAfghanistantoplayamorecentralrolein

industrialdevelopmentby,forexample,buyingbulkfreshproducefromthegrowersandthenaddingvaluethroughgovernment-runfacili7es.Whilethisapproachmayruncountertothecurrent

dominantparadigmregardingtheroleofprivatesectorinthereconstruc7onofAfghanistan,itis

arguablythemosteffec7veapproachtowardins7tu7ngthemuchneededstandardiza7onofquality.

Afghanwomensroleinruralagriculturalproduc7onneedstobedifferen7atedfromotherrural

valuechainstudiesfromaroundtheworld.ComparisonsofAfghanwomeninruralproduc7onto

thatofwomeninAfrica,forexample,whileusefulforguidingthegeneralapproachtogender

mainstreaming,havetobenuancedandcontextualizedtofittheAfghancondi7ons,par7cularlyin

rela7ontoreligious/tradi7onalandrenewedsensi7vi7esaboutwomensroleinsocial,economic,

andpoli7calac7vi7es.Suchsensi7vitydoesnotmeancapitula7ontothecurrentinequitable

condi7onsforwomen.Rather,itshouldleadtoconcludingthatchangingculturalnormsabout

womensplaceinsocio-economicac7vityhastobeaccompaniedwithotherprogramma7cmeasures

inawarenessraising,educa7on,andregulatoryreform.Assuch,allinterven7onsaimedatremoving

barrierstoincreasedpar7cipa7onbywomeninsocietymusthaveprovisionsonimprovingskills

trainingincludingliteracy,empowermentthroughpar7cipa7oninwomensproduc7ongroups,and

mobilitybywomenandamongwomenwithinandbetweenvaluechains.

Afghanwomenplayvariousrolesinweeding,watering,harves7ng,cleaning,drying,andgrading

ac7vi7eswithinthegrape/raisin,almond,andsaffronvaluechains.Theirpresenceandprominence

diminishesandalmostdisappearsasonemovesupthesevaluechains,however.Womensworkin

thethreevaluechains,par7cularlyatthelowend,ismostlyunpaidand,whentheydomoveupthe

valuechain,theyarepaidlowerthanmenforcomparablejobs.Atthelowerendofthesevalue

chainsthewomensinvolvementisversa7leandflexible,allowingforeconomicallyop7malthoughsociallyinequitablefemalelaborinputwhichhasbeenpointedtoasakeyreasonforeconomic

produc7vityinvaluechainsaroundtheworld.43

Inallthreevaluechains,withsomeexcep7onspar7cularlyinthesaffroncase,allac7vi7esand

decisionsinrela7ontotradingandmarke7ngarecarriedoutexclusivelybymen.Wherewomen

haveaèmptedtocontendforrolesandspaceshigheruponthesevaluechains,counteraèmpts

havebeenmadebythemaletraderstoac7velyexcludethewomen.Theposi7onofAfghanwomen

inthethreevaluechainsbroadlyreflectswomenssitua7onacrossotherruralproduc7on

arrangementsandiscommensuratewiththepersistentlydisadvantagedposi7onofAfghansin

general,ranked155onalistof169countriesontheGenderInequalityIndexbyUNDP.44

Genderinequityinthesevaluechainsisafunc7onoflandownershiparrangements,ini7alcapital,

divisionoflaborwithinthehousehold,tradi7ons,culturalandreligiousnorms,levelofeduca7on,

andbiasedandunhealthymarketprac7cesbysomeactors.Thecombinedimpactofthesefactors,

manifestedasbehavioral,cogni7ve,andcons7tu7veins7tu7ons(Figure1),placeswomenata

significantdisadvantageagainstmen,evenwhenwomenareabletoovercomesomeoftheother

mainbarrierssuchasaccesstocapitalorgainingtheirhusbandsapprovaltowork.Thissitua7on

speakstotheprevalenceofthewidelyheldbeliefsthatgoverngenderrela7onsthroughout

Afghanistanwithsomelocalstructuresrela7ngtotheplaceofwomeninsocietybeings7ckierthan

others.

24


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Thetradi7onalviewofwomenasmainlyhomemakersismorevisibleintheruralpartsofthecountry

ascomparedtourbanareasinwhichsomewomencanworkoutsideofhomeandsupplementthe

incomegeneratedbythemalehouseholdmembers.Tradi7onallymenareincontrolofthe

accumulatedwealthofthefamilyandactasthehouseholdsmaindecisionmaker.Whilefemale

householdincomeearnersmaygainmoreofavoiceinhouseholddecisionmaking,thebalanceofpowerovertheuseofhouseholdassetsremainswithmenandislegi7matedandstrengthenedby

thereligiousinheritancelawswhichen7tleawomantohalfofwhatamanreceives.Thepossibili7es

forwomentogainahigherdegreeofindependencebasedonaccumulatedwealtharethuslimited

duetothisverycons7tu7vestructure(Figure1).Over7me,thishasresultedinmenspossessionof

mostofthelandinthefamily.Anumberofwomenfromthesaffronproducingassocia7onsinHerat

spokeofthesefactorsatlengthandintermsoftheirdisadvantagedposi7ontoprofitmorefrom

growingsaffron.

Thedominantcogni7veins7tu7onsrootedinsocial,cultural,andreligiousbeliefsalsodeterwomen

fromreachingthemarkets.Womensunwillingness,fear,orprohibi7ontofreelyexplorethemarkets

limitstheircapacitytoeffec7velyemploythelimitedresourcestheyhaveattheirdisposaltomakea

fairprofitfromtheircontribu7onsinthethreevaluechains.Evenincaseswherewomenhave

organizedthemselvesasassocia7ons,asi

gender agricultural innovation

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