Islamic Republic of Afghanistan - Enhanced Integrated Framework ...

ministration will employ more women anddisabled people. Labor market regulation andthe pension reforms will be improved to provideprotection from the employers, especiallyfor workers engaged in the informal economy.Education and healthEducation and health will remain the prioritysectors for public spending. The Governmentwill continue the policy of providing free universaleducation. Increasing the literacy andnet primary school enrollment rates and decreasingthe number of school drop-outs willbe the main contribution of the education sectorto poverty reduction. Higher attention willbe given to supporting disabled peoples accessto facilities, including specialized institutionsand adjusting schools and universities to meetingtheir needs.The Health sector will continue to be strengthened.Building new health centers in rural andpoor urban areas will be priority for health sectorpublic spending. The special needs of disabledwill be better accounted for in the BasicPackage of Health Services (BPHS).Two major issues that contribute to women’spoverty are a lack of maternal heath servicesand education for girls. Both issues are causedby a lack of facilities and are inter-linked withthe need for culturally appropriate services forwomen and girls. In relation to the provisionof maternal health services, there is a greatneed for female doctors and trained mid-wivesto offer ‘culturally appropriate’ health services.Afghanistan has one of the highest populationgrowths among developing nations and despitestrong cultural limitations the overallpoverty reduction strategy will need to encouragefamily planning.Social protection and urban developmentSocial protection programs will focus on supportingthe most vulnerable and the poorest ofthe poor. This includes “children at risk”,chronically poor women, poor disabled, mentallyill without family protection, neglectedelders and drug edicts.Many urban homes are built without the necessaryconstruction permits, creating uncertaintyand risk for typically poor families. To addressthis uncertainty, the Ministry of Urban Developmentwill include pro-poor urban developmentprograms. The first priority will be tolegalize constructions in residential areas anddevelop basic infrastructure to improve publicservice delivery.Malnutrition is one of the major causes of thehigh infant mortality under 5, with the poor themost vulnerable. The Government will considerintroducing the Zakat-based tax to increaseallocations for social programs to supportthese programs.Agriculture and rural developmentRural development and agriculture are keysectors for improving the rural livelihoods.Access to markets has been indicated as an importantdeterminant for rural poverty in Afghanistan.Programs to support crop diversification,targeted livestock, orchards, distributionand providing farming implements willcontribute to poverty reduction among the ruralpoor. As will improved access to rural allweatherroads, sanitation, electricity, job opportunitiesand promoting rural enterprises. Theseprograms are important tools for rural incomegeneration and the elimination of poppy cultivation.Water and irrigationInvestments in water management and irrigationwill significantly contribute to higher foodsecurity and poverty reduction for those currentlyoperating on rain fed land. In additionto malnutrition, the lack of the access to cleanwater, poor sanitation and sewage is one of themain causes of high infant mortality. The Governmentwill increase public spending on improvingthe access clean water as well as improvedhealth protection to address this.Disaster preparedness and community-basedinsurance schemesNatural disasters, particularly droughts andfloods are one of the major sources of vulnerabilityamong the poor. The NRVA 2005 highlightedthe destruction of crops due todroughts represents a higher poverty risk thanThe Poverty Profile 35