Humanitarian Overview - Ghor Province OCHA Contact: Yama Shiwan August 2013 www.afg.humanitarianresponse.info

Context: The third-largest number of conflict-IDPs in Afghanistan originates from Ghor. The province is chronically food insecure; reliance on rain-fed agriculture makes the population vulnerable to drought. Seasonal flooding has localized but significant impact. People’s access to services and the capacity of humanitarian responders to reach them is severely hampered by poor road infrastructure as well as seasonal and security-related closures.

Key Messages 1. Ghor province will experience drought conditions in 2013 and a humanitarian intervention is being formulated. The coordination of the response at national level needs to be synchronized with the work of the Ghor PDMC: operational coordination of FSAC and WASH should take place at provincial level not regional. Targeting and timing will be critical to avoid the challenges of the 2011/2012 drought response. 2. An integrated long term response is required to mitigate the humanitarian impact of water-related seasonal shocks (drought and flooding). The pre-positioning of humanitarian supplies and a strong relationship with provincial humanitarian stakeholders is necessary for an effective and timely humanitarian intervention. 3. Tribal disputes instigated mainly by IAG leaders cause the majority of displacement requiring humanitarian assistance. An analysis of tribal dynamics and causes of conflict at the place of origin would support the Protection Cluster in devising appropriate contingency planning and exploring potential return opportunities.

People in Need Population (CSO 2012) Humanitarian Organizations Present with Transition Status (June 2013) • Total: 657,200 Current Operations Fully transferred to the • 22,937 protracted & • Male: 51.1% Female: 48.9% WFP, UNHCR, UNICEF, WHO, IOM, ACF, A. Afghan National Army, 5,507 new conflict • Urban: 1% - Rural: 99% AID, CRS, WVI, GP, MADERA, ARAA, CHA, 31 December 2012 IDPs (UNHCR) STARS, ACTD, IAM, WCUK, VWO, RWDOA and (NATO) • 738 natural disaster- ARCS. affected (OCHA)

Humanitarian Coordination Structure: The Provincial Governor chairs the Provincial Disaster Management Committee with the support of ANDMA. Coordination among the relatively high number of NGOs in the provincial capital takes place at the Operational Coordination Team facilitated by OCHA since October 2012.

Humanitarian Access (Issues/Constraints): There are 13 passes in the province, many closed by winter: snow affects severely movement along Highway-2 making pre-positioning of emergency stocks in the provincial capital necessary. NGO movement outside of the provincial capital has decreased following significantly due to security since the end of 2012. Access to Passaband, Taywara, Dawlat Yar, Charsada and Du Layna is affected by landmines and AGEs’ activities. The district of Lal Wa Sarjangal can be better reached from the east (Bamyan).

Disease Outbreaks as reported by DEWS: No significant outbreaks have been reported, but the ability to contain them in remote districts is limited by security, weather and poor road infrastructure. The Department of Public Health acknowledges under-reporting in Passaband, and no sentinel site has been established in Charsada.

Afghanistan Needs and Humanitarian Needs by Sector/Cluster

Vulnerability Analysis Education: AGEs are discouraging girls’ attendance to school in parts of Dawlat Yar, Chaghcharan,

Ghor Charsada, Du Layna, Pasaband and Shahrak, as well as Taywara district. Sector Score Food Security and Agriculture: Due to the expected failure of the harvest in rain-fed areas, food aid, FSAC 4 animal fodder and seeds will be required to support immediately the most vulnerable rural households in the Education 4 districts of Charsada, Chaghcharan, Passaband and Dulayna. 4 Health Health: Vaccination coverage in the districts of Pasaband, Tulak, Taywara and Lal Wa Sarjangal is Multi-Sector 2 Nutrition 2 significantly low and of concern. WASH 3 Nutrition: Basic data is not available for the whole province, however; according to a survey conducted by Conflict Displacement* 5 ACF in Sep 2011, the GAM rates in Shahrak, Pasaband, Tulak and Chaghcharan are below 7.3%. Security Incidents 2 Protection: Conflict is largely rooted in unresolved tribal conflict. Tracking displacement outside of Civilian Casualties 3 Chaghcharan is challenging with assessment/response in Passaband not possible at the moment. Child Mines 1 Seasonal Natural Hazards 3 recruitment in armed forces and early/forced marriage are a concern in the province. Physical Access 4 Water, Sanitation and Hygiene: General vulnerability is high as only 20% of the population has access to Population 2012 3 safe drinking water and almost none to sanitary toilets. Disinfection of contaminated water points, water Average Score 3.3 purification and hygiene promotion is required in the flooding season. Priority districts for intervention are Rank 13 out of 34 Provinces Charsada, Chaghcharan and Dawlat Yar.