“Causes of Poverty in Afghanistan and Possible Ways of Reducing it”

Every year the NCPR conducts a number of research projects, which support by Konrad Adenauer Foundation. Therefore, the NCPR prepared a Catalog of Studies which was a compilation of 90 research topics (30 topics per each department) that chose by the Heads of the NCPR’s Departments in consultation with Kabul University’s three corresponding Faculties. Of these one final topic were chosen for research by the Department of Economics

after further extensive consultation with representatives from government and non-government organizations, members of the parliament, civil society and other actors involved in policy making and implementation. The results of these consultations were computerized and the topic of “Causes of Poverty in Afghanistan and Possible Ways of Reducing it” scored the highest votes among others topics of the Department of Economics and was chosen as the main research topic of 2007.
The research team including three lecturers and six students from the Faculty of Economics of Kabul University and NCPR reviewed those literatures about the poverty issues, which were very suitable and fit with the condition of Afghanistan. In theoretical part researchers came up to define the poverty, types of poverty, causes of poverty, rural and urban poverty, poverty in Afghanistan and Millennium Development goals and others strategies of poverty reduction experienced by some countries. Subsequently, on the basis of theoretical viewpoints and issues discussed with NCPR, research questions and hypothesis were derived. Later on a questionnaire that included 40 closed and open ended questions for the field work was prepared.
Taking into account the budget constraint and others barriers, after several meetings with specialists and scholars of economics and also with other departments of NCPR, the decision has been made to conduct the field survey in Kabul Province and its related districts. According to the formulas of Kargcie, Morgan and Kocran the sample population of five hundred samples for survey was chosen. Thus, 500 questionnaires were used that 200(40%) out of 500 were allocated for “Woloswalis” (rural districts), and 300(60%) for districts of Kabul city.

Five Wolswalis such as MirBacha kot, Qarbagh, Bagrami, Dasabz and Paghman and 15 districts out of 16 in Kabul city were selected for survey. In addition, the research team interviewed and collected the ideas of economists and top experts from different ministries and other organizations about poverty, minimum rate of livelihood and poverty line in Afghanistan.
In this research Causes of Poverty in Afghanistan has been investigated as an economic-social as well as political problems.

Goal of this research:
To identify scientifically what are the Causes of Poverty in Afghanistan and show solutions.
Therefore, the main research questions of the project are as follow:
A. What is poverty from Afghans viewpoint?
B. What are the main causes of poverty in Afghanistan?
C. What negative affects emerge the existing poverty in Afghanistan?
D. Are the efforts of Afghan Government and International Community successful in terms of reducing poverty in rural and urban areas of Afghanistan?
E. How dose poverty reduce in Afghanistan, and which accompanying policies should be implemented to solve such a problem?
F. Could economic growth conclude to poverty reduction, and how?

Research Hypotheses:
1- Low level of income, unemployment, war, low level of literacy, immigration, high number of children and big family, homelessness, and implementation of inefficient and unsuccessful programs of the Afghan Government and International Community in terms of reducing poverty are the main causes of poverty in Afghanistan.
2- Economic growth could be concluding to poverty reduction in Afghanistan.

Main Finding:
The main findings of this project are summarized as follow:
The 179 out of 500 persons were literate, of which 2.8% have 1-3, 34% have 4-7, and 63.2 % have over 8 family members. However from remained 321 persons 4% have 1-3, 43.8 % have 4-7, and 52.2% have more than 8 family members. If we consider the above data, we can easily find that majority of the families have excessive numbers of members that a normal range. Subsequently, if we compare the family members with their income, 63% of the families earning 50-200 Afghanis daily, of which 5% have 1-3 members, 45% have 4-7, and the rest 13 % have more than 8 family members. Also, 24.2% of interviewees are earning 200-350 Afghanis daily, of which 4.1% have 1-3, 9.1% have 4-7, and the rest 11% have more than 8 family members. However, 3% of our sample earning 500-650 Afghanis daily of which 1% of them have 4-7 and 2% of them have over 8 family members. Only 2.2% of our sample is earning over 650 Afghanis that have over 8 family members.

Relatively, if we compare the consumptions of the families with the number of their members, 21 out of 500 persons that the number of their family members were 1-3 persons, 57.1% consuming 50-200 Afghanis daily, 33.3% 200-500 Afghanis, 4.7 % 500-650 Afghanis, and 4.7% consuming more than 650 Afghanis daily. However, 194 out of 500 persons that their family members were 4-7 persons , 40.7 % of them are consuming 50-200 Afghanis daily, 35 % 200-350 Afghanis, 9.3 % 350-500 Afghanis, 9.3 % consuming 500-650 Afghanis, and 5.7% are consuming more than 650 Afghanis daily. From 272 out of 500 persons who have over 8 family members, 19.1% of them consuming 50-200 Afghanis, 41.6 % 200-350 Afghanis, 13.2 % 350-500 Afghanis, 15.5 % 500-650 Afghanis, and 10.6 % consuming more than 650 Afghanis daily. The rest 13 persons out of 500 did not answer to the related question of our questionnaire. The above figures show that the people consumption level is higher than their income.

At the same time, 151 persons of interviewees were craftsmen, and 151 others were daily-paid that formed 60.4% of our sample. The remained 7.2% were jobless, 12.4% have other types of jobs, 12.6% were government employees, and the rest 7.4% were farmer.
In compression to the type of jobs with the people literacy rate, 64.2% of the people who were illiterate, were craftsmen and daily-paid, but the rest 35.8 % were literate. Moreover, out of 57 craftsmen 51% of them have primary education, 21% middle secondary education, 14% high school, 8.8% up to 14th grade, 25% up to higher education, and the rest 3.1% have out of school education. From the governmental employees we interviewed, 21.9% were secondary school graduates, 50% were high school graduates, 25% were higher education graduates of Ministry of Education and the rest 3.1% have out of school education. It shows that majority of the people that were educated, had low level of education, and conclude to not find proper job to feed their family members.

To conclude the main points, the families who had large numbers were earning less than the families with low numbers. The families who were less educated earning less than the families with higher education. The last point also concluded to low chances to find proper jobs for themselves.

Therefore, we recommend a number of mechanisms in order to come up with solutions for the above mentioned problems as follow:
1- To provide possibilities with optimal income by the Afghan Government and International Community for all Afghan especially poor people.
2- To design and implement compulsory education up to the 12th class level instead of secondary education that indicated in Afghanistan Constitution, or vocational education for all Afghans.

3- To provide more facilities in terms of microfinance credits to poor families and their control to be used in productive areas than their daily consumptions.

4- To provide balanced services in electricity, health sectors and drinking water, security, shelter and social insurances both in capital and provinces by the Afghan Government.