Current Agricultural Status and Problems faced in Paghman District of Kabul Province, Afghanistan

Abstract

Afghanistan, an agricultural and land locked country, located in the heart of Asia. More than 75% of country’s population is living in rural areas. Paghman District located in the Kabul Province of Afghanistan was selected for conducting this research. In Paghman District, there are some severe problems regarding agricultural land use, water resource conservation, and utilization. The objective of this study is to identify current agriculture status and problems faced in Paghman District for conserving water environment of the Qargha Reservoir qualitatively and quantitatively. To achieve the objectives, a questionnaire survey was conducted to find out the current agricultural status and problems faced in Paghman District. One or more local farmers (representatives) were selected from each of the 15 different villages in Qargha Reservoir watershed of Paghman District. The results indicated that water shortage, soil erosion, and low fertility were the major factors causing low agricultural productivity. Majority of the local farmers perceived water shortage magnitude as severe and very severe at 33%, respectively. Local farmers’ awareness about soil erosion effects on their cultivated lands were minor. About 54% of the local farmers were not aware of the soil erosion effects on their lands. The correlation analysis showed that water shortage and soil erosion negatively affected the yields. The development of proper conservation strategies as well as farmers education on proper soil and water resource management is needed to achieve sustainable agriculture in Paghman District of Kabul Province, Afghanistan.