AFGHANISTAN
I.1. THE COUNTRY
I.1.1. GEOGRAPHY
Afghanistan is a landlocked country between 29o40' and 38 o 40' north latitude, and 60 o 31' and 75 o 00'east longitude. It has a total of 647,500 sq km of land area, and reportedly 248,187 ha of water bodies (2,482 sq km, some 1.0% of total land area). Its national borders total 5,529 km, including: China 76 km, Iran 936 km, Pakistan 2,430 km, Tajikistan 1,206 km, Turkmenistan 744 km, Uzbekistan 137 km.
The Hindu Kush mountain range splits Afghanistan from east to west. The steep high peaks of the Wakhan Corridor are in the east, at 5,500-7,500 meters altitude. In the east-central and central part, the mountains broaden into wide spurs fanning to the north and south at 3,000-4,000 meters elevation. In the west, the mountains end in the Safed Koh Range, north of Herat and close to the northwestern border, where the altitude is around 1,100 meters.
Seed-Related Evaluation: agricultural production conditions will vary significantly with the geography and topography. This points to the need for a decentralized seed supply system which produces varieties best adapted to local conditions, which vary from place to place. And, each decentralized system will probably need to produce small amounts; so smaller local seed units appear most efficient.
I.1.2. GOVERNMENTAL ADMINISTRATION
Administratively, there are 30 provinces: Badakhshan, Badghis, Baghlan, Balkh, Bamian, Farah, Faryab, Ghazni, Ghowr, Helmand, Herat, Jowzjan, Kabul, Kandahar, Kapisa, Konar, Kondoz, Laghman, Lowgar, Nangarhar, Nimruz, Oruzgan, Paktia, Paktika, Parvan, Samangan, Sar-e Pol, Takhar, Wardak, Zabol. There may be two new provinces of Nurestan (Nuristan) and Khowst.
Within each province are subsidiary Districts. Within these, most rural families live in villages. Villages appear to be somewhat tightly knit local groups, guided by the village Shurah (council).
The central government had an organizational structure of Ministries for each important area. These included Ministries of Agriculture; Rural Development: Public Health; Women Affairs; Higher Education; Water and Power; Commerce; Education; Mines and Industries; Pilgrimage (Haj); Light Industries; Interior Affairs; Defense; Civil Aviation and Tourism; Information and Culture; Reconstruction; Urban Development; Transport; Public Works; Justice; Martyrs and Disables; Telecommunication; Foreign Affairs; Border Affairs; Refugees; Planning; Finance; Irrigation. Another Cabinet-level agency was the General Directorate of Intelligence
I.1.3. TRANSPORTATION
Quick and reliable transportation is an essential element of formal seed supply, and characteristics of the local transport system determine the structure of the formal seed industry.
Afghanistan's transport system (2002) was composed of:
Roads:
total: 21,000 km; paved: 2,793 km; unpaved: 18,207 km (1998 est.). The condition
of roads has deteriorated significantly during the recent conflict.
Waterways: 1,200 km chiefly Amu Darya river, which handles vessels with
DWT up to about 500 (2001).
Railroads: total: 24.6 km; broad gauge: 9.6 km 1.524-m gauge from
Gushgy (Turkmenistan) to Towraghondi; 15 km 1.524-m gauge from Termez (Uzbekistan)
to Kheyrabad trans-shipment point on south bank of Amu Darya (2001).
Airports with paved runways: total: 10; over 3,047 m-long runway:
3; 2,438 to 3,047 m runway: 4; 1,524 to 2,437 m runway: 2; under 914 m runway:
1 (2001 est.). Damage during recent conflicts has reportedly been significant.
Airports with unpaved runways: total: 36; over 3047 m runway: 1;
2,438 to 3,047 m runway: 7; 1,524 to 2,437 m runway: 13; 914 to 1,523 m
runway: 4; under 914 m runway: 11 (2001 est.).
Public transport is generally by bus and truck, with loads of people and produce packed into small spaces or on the roof. Most Afghans in rural areas travel by foot, donkey or horse.
Current status: most transport facilities, especially roads, are in very poor condition due to conflict and lack of maintenance. Transport for any distance is reportedly difficult. What little existed has been devastated after recent hostilities. Transport networks are largely destroyed, and severely limited by the rugged terrain. Roads, and the cars and trucks which use them, are in "generally poor condition". Hundreds of bridges have been destroyed.
Seed-Related Evaluation: Roads appear to be the primary means of transport and distribution of seed and inputs, and to market the available marketable farm produce. The road system does not seem to be efficient in its current state, and extensive distribution of seed from more-or-less centralized points may be slow, expensive, and at times difficult. This practically mandates decentralization into many smaller seed production units which serve small areas within easy reach, preferably by local farmers coming to the seed unit to obtain their seed.
I.1.4. COMMUNICATION
In 1991, there were about 30,000 telephones; telephone and telegraph connected major towns.
Current status: Most of the communications network, including the Kabul international telephone exchange system, was destroyed by air attacks in October 2001.
Seed-related evaluation: lack of communication, combined with lack of transport, limits the area which a seed program can serve. This reinforces the need to go to "informal" community-based seed production, to serve small local areas.
I.1.5. ELECTRICITY
Before 1979, the level of consumption of energy (electricity, gas, etc.) was among the world's lowest. In 1993, UNDP estimated that 60% of the electric transmission lines were inoperative.
Low voltage is 220 volt, single-phase; standard plugs are 2-prong, European round prongs. High voltage is 880 volt, 3-phase.
Current status: war damage, looting and poor maintenance has caused electricity supply to drop far below its potential level of 400 mw. Even at full capacity, 400 mw is substantially below the country's needs. Generating plants, substations, transformers, switchgear, distribution and transmission lines are all in very poor condition or inoperative.
Seed-related evaluation: use of electricity in cleaning, treating and storing seed must be minimized. More reasonable are small machines of minimal capacity which can be powered by small generators included with the machines.