Afghanistan Food Security Outlook Update, August 2012
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Download document Well above average 2012 cereal harvest improves food availability
Key Messages
The Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation, and Livestock’s (MAIL) agriculture prospects report reveals that Afghanistan’s 2012 cereal harvest is the second highest harvest on record for the last 35 years. The volume of grain of the 2012 harvest is estimated to be just two percent below the 2009 record.
Low wheat and wheat flour prices, high agricultural labor rates, and favorable livestock prices are enabling above average food access in Afghanistan during the post-harvest period.
The United Nation’s Children’s Fund (UNICEF) October 2010 to May 2011 survey reveals that malnutrition remains high in much of Afghanistan. The survey released in June 2012 estimates that the national prevalence of global acute malnutrition (GAM), underweight children under five, and stunting of children under five at 17.8 percent, 31.2 percent, and 55 percent, respectively.
Access to food in extreme northern Badakhshan and the Wakhan Corridor is expected to improve in September as the local harvest begins. The local wheat harvest is expected to be near average as conditions have improved following the extreme cold spring temperatures.