Handicap International experience in Afghanistan - CBM

means that the average living space is one room for three people. Small size of households is more commonwhen the head is a woman.Figure 40: Cumulative Distribution of Household of Persons with Disability (left)and Household of Non-Disabled (right) Regarding Number of Members per Roomin the House (Lorenz Curve)10090807060504030201000 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 10010090807060504030201000 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80 90 100But inequality of size of household is important and well represented by the Lorenz Curve showing thecumulative distribution of households according to the number of members by room. The equality distribution(same number of people by room in all households) is represented by a diagonal line, and the greater thedeviation of the Lorenz curves from this line, the greater the inequality. Households of persons with disabilityseem to be more overcrowded: the average number of people by room is higher for household with personswith disability.The level ofdebt can eitherbe a factor ofvulnerability,leading topoverty, or, onthe contrary, away of drawingon socialresources toachieve certainfunctioningsand increasecapabilitiesDebt and Donation: Assets or Factors of Vulnerability?Level of Debt: Higher for Persons with DisabilityThe level of debt can either be a factor of vulnerability, leading to poverty, or, on the contrary, a way ofdrawing on social resources to achieve certain functionings and increase capabilities. In fact, as loan is oftena family matter in Afghanistan, if a person or his/her relatives cannot face his/her obligations of repayment,there is a propensity towards selling or mortgaging assets to pay back the debt. Around 35.8% of all Afghansaged over 14, female and male, have taken a loan, whatever the amount might be, in the 5 years precedingthe interview. Figure 41 shows that borrowing is a common practice, especially if we consider that the loan isoften taken for a family need and is paid back by all the active people in the family.What are the characteristics of debt of Afghans today? Understanding these will help us to evaluate the riskof falling into poverty for the people in debt and assessing how vulnerable they may be. One major aspect isthat people who lend money do not often ask for interest. Even if usury is a forbidden practice in a Muslimcountry, it is important to note that the mortgager gets back the amount lent, even if successive generationshave to pay it back.A majority of active persons report having taken loans (46.2%) as shown in Figure 41. Nevertheless, morethan a quarter (27.6%) of people who are not currently employed have also taken loans in the last fiveyears. Among these, a large proportion of people looking for a job have taken loans (55.9%), followed byolder people (52.9%) who do not work anymore but have different sources of income coming from houserent, field rent, etc. There is a statistically significant difference between persons with disability taking a loan(36.1%) and non-disabled (30.5%). This difference is even higher when we consider active people: around60% active persons with disability are indebted compared to only 45.7% active non-disabled.56 Understanding the Challenge Ahead