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About DCA

Helping the Afghan people through their livestock fghanistan is one of the poorest countries in the world, with 36% of the population below the poverty line. Of the 35.5 million Afghans, about 24 million are living in the countryside, being more or less dependent on agriculture and livestock.

Address:

  • Street # 5 of Syloo, House # 152-153, District 3, Kabul, Afghanistan
  • info.afg@dca-af.org
  • Sun - Thu: 8.00 AM to 4.00 PM

Kuchi

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Community Livestock and Agricultural Program - Livestock Development among the Kuchi project

The Kuchi are Afghanistan’s nomadic pastoralists, forming 8-10% of the total population. They live primarily in the rural areas of the country and migrate seasonally with their herds over vast tracts of the country’s rangelands. The Kuchi are a vulnerable population, but one which contributes significantly to the livestock sector. Part of the Kuchi nomads have settled over the last decades, but still consider themselves as Kuchi. The overall goal of the CLAP Kuchi Programme is “to reduce poverty in rural Afghanistan”. More specifically, the project objective is to improve food security of 223,000 poor rural households. The programme is organized around three mutually reinforcing components: community development, livestock and agriculture development, and policy support and a young professionals programme.

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Dutch Committee for Afghanistan

DCA

The objective of the CLAP-Kuchi livestock project is to enhance livelihoods of Kuchi and their resilience against predictable livestock hazards. The project targets both migratory pastoralists and settled Kuchi. Main activities concern improving access to quality veterinary services, provision of extension services and development of fodder banks to improve year-round feeding of small ruminants, and promotion of value chain activities (milk, wool, meat), also among women. Especially the women Self Help Groups engaged in lamb fattening have proven to be very successful.

Originally, the CLAP Kuchi Programme would close on 31 December 2019. However, in May 2018, with the provision of additional financing, the completion and closing date have been extended to 30 June 2022 and 31 December 2022 respectively. At the same time, the successful livestock activities will be expanded into four new provinces, Nangarhar, Balkh, Herat, and Baghlan, in addition to the original target area of Kabul, Parwan, and Logar. Also, DCA will cover routes of Kuchi beneficiaries during the winter in Laghman and Khost provinces, and during the summer season in Paktya, Panjsher and Kapisa provinces.

In the years to come, veterinary services, extension services and value chain activities will be rolled out into the new provinces. There will be even more emphasis on improving the income of settled female Kuchi through small income generating schemes as lamb fattening, poultry, milk processing and wool production. A new activity, made possible through the additional funding, concerns a pilot to genetically improve the native sheep breeds. A research farm will be established, accommodating an elite flock of sheep. The improved offspring will be distributed to carefully selected beneficiaries. It is expected that thanks to the additional funding, the number of benefitting households will increase from 20,000 to 50,000.