Monday March 27, 2017
Kabul (BNA) Afghanistan is an agricultural country, but meat and dairies are still import from neighboring countries despite of increasing meat and dairies products inside the country.
Based on report and central statistics authority, meat and dairies products worth $ 190 million are imported annually from various countries of the world in particular neighboring countries. The statistics have shown that Afghanistan needs further investment for increasing home products and self-sufficiency in this regard. Although Afghanistan has numerous paddocks for raising cattle and most of people who are living in suburb and remote areas of the country are engaged in raising home cattle, the country is still a good place for using meat and dairies imported from outside. There is no exact statistic how much Afghanistan needs meat and dairy in market.
According to reports, Pakistani buffalos’ meat has been illegally imported to Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Afghanistan government is determined to provide and pave facilities for home meats and dairies products inside the country by establishing slaughterhouses. Officials for ministry of agriculture and livestock have said that construction work on five big slaughterhouses was underway and would be completed in near future in Kabul, Kandahar, Balkh and Herat provinces. Also, there is no exact statistic in connection with need of Afghanistan market to fish meat, but report related to imports of fish to the country has shown that imports of fish are less as there are 1220 farms in 12 provinces where fish is raised and much need for using fish meat in the country is addressed. A spokesperson to ministry of agriculture and livestock Lutfullah Rashid said, “Fish raising is increasing in the country as most of the people have paid attention to this industry”. He added that 750 fish raising farms have been established by private sector in the country during the past two years.
“Government farms are currently operating for raising fish and it is determined that new fish raising farms of Kapisa and Herat will be soon renovated by ministry of agriculture and livestock”, Rashid asserted.
Using of chicken has also increasing in the country where statistics relevant to annual imports of chicken have shown that Afghans are more using chicken than cows’ meat. According to officials for ministry of agriculture and livestock, Afghanistan needs 172600 metric tons chicken meat annually 84300 tons of which are produced inside the country. On the other hand, central statistics have shown that Afghanistan imported chicken worth $ 39.3 million only in 2015 from Brazil, Argentina, Canada, China, Denmark, Iran, Pakistan, India, Tajikistan and UAE. Currently, there are 7932 farms for raising chicken across the country although ministry of agriculture and livestock provides technical cooperation with the farms, according to ministry of agriculture and livestock.
Only during the past two years, ministry of agriculture and livestock in cooperation with private sector has been able to create nearly 210 chicken farms across the country the ministry is determined to such farms in all provinces during the current year. The spokesperson to ministry of agriculture and livestock further said that the government would provide from 40 – 60% financial cost of the farms to volunteers for construction such farms in the country, adding that the respective ministry hoped Afghanistan would soon reach to self-sufficiency in producing chicken. One of owners of chicken farms in Herat Raza Timori says chicken farms operating in the province can only provide chicken to Herat people, adding that they are not able to send their products to other neighboring provinces due to insecurity along highways. Meanwhile, deputy of farm-owners union for eastern zone Fazil Mohammad Sayar says there are nearly 3100 chicken farms in Kunar, Nangarhar and Laghman provinces, but unfortunately 800 of the farms have been closed in a number of the provinces’ districts due to increasing insecurities.
Karima Malikzada
