Islamic Republic of Afghanistan - Enhanced Integrated Framework ...

sickness or loss of a working family member.Building more efficient disaster preparednessand response will decrease the risk of fallinginto poverty. Further, the Government willinitiate the establishment of community basedcrop insurance schemes to enable the poor tobetter mitigate the risks of losing harvest.Energy and transportExpanding the national road network, includingthe construction of the rural roads, will allowpoor households to diversify income generation– from low profitable crops to moreprofitable activates such as trade, services andsmall businesses. Investments in transmissionlines and power generation will increase accessto electricity, improving productivity.Social protection safety nets will be strengthenedto ensure the poor can cope with theplanned elimination of energy subsidies, whichwill increase the risk of the poor and marginalhouseholds falling further into poverty, especiallyfor the urban households.Justice and anti-corruptionGreater access to justice, especially for women,is an important component of the ANDS toempower the poor and provide more efficientprotection to victims of violence. Justice reformwill also improve the business environmentand increase investments and job generation.The ANDS will also reduce corruption in keysectors such as justice, health, public administrationand education, which will have a significantbenefit for the poor.their role in providing the Government withthe “voices of the poor” and policy advice.CONCLUSIONDuring the pre-harvest spring of 2007, theNRVA estimated that 42 percent of the populationwas below the poverty line. A great manymore people remain vulnerable to falling belowthe poverty line as a result of rising food andfuel prices or bad weather. Great reliance isbeing placed on private sector-led developmentand growth to create sustainable employmentand market opportunities. It is these opportunitiesthat will allow the majority of Afghans toimprove their lives and pull themselves out ofchronic poverty. As the ANDS sector strategiesare implemented, great effort is being made touse participatory and consultative processes tobetter understand the needs of the poorest andmost vulnerable groups, to inform the designof appropriate programs to address thoseneeds. The real needs are so enormous thatsubstantial interventions are indeed required toprovide real assistance to the neediest, particularlywomen who are burdened with child careresponsibilities, social constraints, and the disabledwho are not provided enough opportunityfor full participation in society in order totake advantage of improved employment andmarket advantages. Special programs are suggestedto be put in place to target these groupsso that they too share in the benefits from economicand social development programs. Thisis important not only on humanitarian groundsbut in terms of building the community cohesionthat is the foundation of a tolerant andcompassionate Islamic state.Empowering the poor: role of NGOsExpanding the service delivery and policy inputrole of NGOs and civil society are crucial toreducing poverty. This is strengthened by theANDS’ participatory structure with Afghansociety. ANDS progress reports will be publiclydisseminated. Civil society and subnationallevel bodies will be consulted inpreparation of the ANDS updates. Participatorypoverty qualitative assessments and quantitativeanalysis will be provided on a regularbasis to obtain input from NGOs and civil societyon the key priorities for the poverty reduction.The role of the NGOs in delivering theservices to the poor will also increase as will36Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS)