The UN World Food Programme (WFP) in Afghanistan has built more than 2.5 km long irrigation canals to support local villagers in the northeastern Badakhshan province.
WFP said in a tweet on Sunday that at least 55 local communities would be able to easily water their lands, fruit orchards, and forests in four districts of Badakhshan.
The project was supported by the WFP and Rupani Foundation Afghanistan, the tweet noted.
The completion of the project comes at a critical time when the country is grappling with a hunger crisis and water shortage and a high rate of unemployment. For many farmers, these irrigation canals would be an economic boost and their harvests would likely improve.
The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has warned that Afghanistan is grappling with extreme weather and natural disasters with temperatures rising faster than the global average.
The country, according to OCHA, requires urgent support to cope with the climate change implications which have resulted in severe droughts and acute food insecurity, threatening agriculture and jeopardizing livelihoods across the country, particularly in remote areas like Badakhshan.
