Handicap International experience in Afghanistan - CBM

Figure 46: Distribution of Households of Persons with Disability and Householdsof Non-Disabled According to Possession of Livestock8070• HH with a Person with Disability• HH with Non-Disabled6050403020100OwnsAnimalsChickens Cows DonkeysSheep Goats Horses Rooster CamelsFinally, povertyappears as a“great leveller”.Disability doesnot have animpact whenthe generalpopulation isfaced with severeand chronicpovertyConclusions & RecommendationsTo Sum Up:• Access to basic commodities and housing conditions do not show that circumstances are worse forhouseholds with a person with disability: there is no significant difference among the poorest betweenhouseholds of persons with disability and households of non-disabled. The gap is wider among householdsheaded by a man and those headed by a woman. When one considers the less vulnerable households,households with persons with disability are a lesser proportion than those of non-disabled.• Loan can be considered both as a factor of risk and as a factor of empowerment. It can ensure for somepeople a capability asset, whereas for others it represents a transitional survival…• The loan amounts also show the link with vulnerability. People who take the highest loans are not thepoorest but the ones who need to invest for the future or cover a special need. They usually have thecapacity to pay back. They use a larger social network of friends and relatives to cover their needs.Elder men offer more guarantee of security. The loan system seems to be based on the social capital.Reimbursement must be ensured, so higher income is also an asset. More vulnerable people such aspersons with disability and women take loans but they cannot benefit from the same network: theyrely on parents or children (especially for women heads of households), and brothers (for persons withdisability). Higher amounts of debt without the resources to pay back, or having someone’s help in caseof need, becomes a major burden. In this configuration, debt might be a factor of higher vulnerability.This is probably the reason for which women without disability do not take high loans. This also mayexplain why women who are heads of households, or disabled women, particularly in debt, are morevulnerable, with unexpected expenses to face. As a result they try to meet urgent needs by taking loansand hoping to find a way to pay back later.• As expected, men give money more often to the members of their social network, particularly to theirspouses. If they are a lower proportion in terms of receiving money, they nevertheless receive higheramounts than women. Donation of money is also part of the financial dependency of women on othermales of the family. Women are not allowed to work, especially in rural areas, so men provide theresources for their needs. If they inherit part of the family land, they hand it over to the male of the family(sister to a brother, widow to a son) against a commitment of the latter to cover her needs.Finally, poverty appears as a “great leveller”. This is evident in some of the findings of this report. This can besaid with regard to commodities, living spaces as well as other assets. Disability does not have an impactwhen the general population is faced with severe and chronic poverty. Lack of water, electricity and generalcommodities for the overall population leads to a very minimal difference between households of personswith disability and non-disabled households. Persons with disability are not necessarily the poorest of the60 Understanding the Challenge Ahead