Alexis Celine Kim

Afghanistan: The Long Famine

Annotated Bibliography

Action Against Hunger Workers Screen a Child for Undernutrition.​ ​Action Against Hunger​,

www.actionagainsthunger.org/. Accessed 30 Jan. 2019.

This picture shows me what Action Against Hunger did for Afghanistan. It is one of

many things. In this picture, the workers are screening a baby for undernutrition. This

helps me understand another possible solution: going to Afghanistan and taking care of

the little kids, provide people with sanitized water and healthy food.

An Afghan Girl Eats a Fruit as She Stands near Her Tent at a Camp for Displaced People on the

Outskirts of Kabul on Dec. 14, 2008.​ ​National Post​,

www.nationalpost.com/arts/Afghanistan+brink+famine+agency+warns/1080245/story.ht

ml. Accessed 30 Jan. 2019.

This photograph shows a young girl eating a fruit near her tent, where the displaced

people are. This helps me understand how poor and hungry young children and their

families are.

"Afghanistan." ​Action Against Hunger,​ Action Against Hunger | ACF-USA,

www.actionagainsthunger.org/countries/asia/afghanistan. Accessed 31 Jan. 2019.

This website is about the organization, Action Against Hunger, helping Afghans in many

ways. Action Against Hunger is an organization that helped many Afghans by providing

them food and clean water. They performed projects in nutrition and health, water,

sanitation and hygiene, food security and livelihoods, and metal health and care practices.
 Action Against Hunger organization worked in Afghanistan for two decades. They led 12

nutritional assessments. In Ghor, they "implemented multisectorial projects and

integrated approaches in support of the health centers and the communities in order to

prevent maternal and child mortality and morbidity" (Action Against Hunger). In

Helmand, they applied integrated water, sanitation and hygiene projects, nutrition, mental

health and care practices. I will use this information to learn what other organizations did

to help Afghanistan with their problem, and I will use this to think of possible solutions.

"Afghanistan." ​World Food Programme​, 2018, www1.wfp.org/countries/afghanistan. Accessed

31 Jan. 2019.

This website is about the struggles of hunger Afghanistan is going through. Children are

stunted, infrastructure is crumbling, and environment is damaged. 41 percent of children

under 5 are stunted with a low height for their age. Natural disasters cause this problem

such as droughts, earthquakes, landslides, etc. WFP has been working with Afghans to

help them survive the problem and solve it. I can use this information to explain the

effects and causes of hunger in Afghanistan.

"Asia Hunger Facts." ​Hunger Notes​, World Hunger Education Service, 2016,

www.worldhunger.org/asia-hunger-facts/. Accessed 26 Oct. 2018.

This web page talks about the effects of hunger. Many health problems are caused by the

lack of food and hunger, and those health problems include stunting and wasting.

Stunting is when one can't develop their bodies, such as growth, and can't reach the level

they are supposed to reach in development. Wasting is when one has too light of a weight

to match their height. Stunting and wasting are two similar problems in health, because
 both are problems in the development of a human being. Another problem is based on

micronutrient deficiencies, and examples of those are Vitamin A deficiency, Zinc

deficiency, Iron Consumption and Anemia deficiencies, etc. This helps me understand

the health effects of hunger.

"Beyond Belief - Afghan Women's Hardship and Hunger." ​Alive Mind Cinema,​ uploaded by

AliveMind, Kinolorber, 2007, www.youtube.com/watch?v=HzWNRa4wFNc. Interview.

This video is about several Afghans who explain what their hardships are, and what they

do when starving. The first woman says that she waits for God to help her. She makes her

kids believe that these hard days won't stay. Then, the second woman says that there are

many days when she has to go hungry, but most days, she gives her food (that is

available) to her brothers because they go to school. Because they go to school, they will

be hungrier than her. But, as the first woman says, they don't feel alone because other

Afghans are going through the same pain, the same hardships. I will use this information

to prove that Afghan people are suffering under many days of hunger, and how this

shows that they need support from the food-rich countries like us.

Cordesman, Anthony H. "Agriculture, Food, and Poverty in Afghanistan Is a 'Population-centric'

Strategy Possible?" ​CSIS​, Center for Strategic & International Studies, 26 Apr. 2010,

www.csis.org/analysis/agriculture-food-and-poverty-afghanistan. Accessed 28 Jan. 2019.

This web page explains that some 60 percent of Afghans had enough food some of the

time, and the other 40 percent didn't, not even sometimes. The thing is, it said "some of

the time" and not all the time, so the real question to wonder about is if the 60 percent

have enough food to make it have sense that they actually do have enough food. Poverty
 took a larger death toll than war or accidents did. poverty is caused by patronage,

corruption, over-emphasis on short-term goals rather than long term developments, and

impunity. According to a report published by the Office of the High Commissioner for

Human Rights, 9 million Afghans are in absolute poverty and only 23 percent of

Afghanistan have safe drinking water. The government is often unable to deliver food to

the Afghans, and corruption limits access to services for a large proportion of the

population. "Many of the respondents interviewed during the field research believed that

only 15-20 percent of the food aid reached the poorest people...Only 40 sacks of wheat

were distributed to some 600 families through food aid programme in Badgah village in

the Western Ghor Province, while in Kasi village in the same province, only 10 sacks

were provided to some 300 families." This text evidence shows that even if organizations

are reaching out, they are not enough or they are not well reached. Some even think that

they are sent somewhere else. Police also took some of the share by force, and this is

shown when "'the authorities distributing the aid refused to give a share to the policemen,

the police fired in the air to hold control of the situation,'" (CSIS). Even if aid reaches the

agricultural part of the problem or the farmers, they don't really help. I will use this

information to prove that some aids for the problem aren't working out very well, and

how serious the problem is. I will use this to state exactly how many and what percent of

the population really need help.

Denning, Sarah. "Why Is Afghanistan Poor?" ​The Borgen Project​, 19 Aug. 2017,

borgenproject.org/why-is-afghanistan-poor/. Accessed 31 Jan. 2019.

This website tells why Afghanistan is poor, which can be a cause to hunger. So, the
 causes to poverty can be causes to hunger. It explains that they are poor because the

economy is too small for the growing labor workforce. Afghanistan is poor because of its

dependence on agriculture and informal labor markets, because low investments and

natural disasters hurt the agriculture market that Afghans depended on for employment.

Also, its population is big, but there is not much farmable land. Therefore, cannot grow

crops and food, leading to famine. I will use this information to learn about the causes.

"Drought Causes Famine in Afghanistan." ​FAO,​ 13 June 2001,

www.fao.org/english/newsroom/global/gw0105-e.htm. Accessed 31 Jan. 2019.

This website explains about the drought in Afghanistan and how it affected the Afghans.

The livestock and their food sources were destroyed. This helps me understand a cause

for the hunger problem in Afghanistan: the drought.

"Food Assistance Fact Sheet - Afghanistan." ​USAID​, 22 Sept. 2018,

www.usaid.gov/afghanistan/food-assistance. Accessed 31 Jan. 2019.

This website explains what the situation is: three decades of war, natural disasters (the

flood), etc. "The Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET) projects large

areas of the country will experience Crisis-levels of acute food security in March--at the

peak of the January-April lean season---and Emergency (IPC 4) outcomes are projected

for worst-affected areas in January, specifically in Badghis and Faryab Provinces." This

shows how severe the problem is. Food For Peace (FFP) contributed 73.9 million dollars

in 2018, 68.4 million dollars in 2017, and 44 million dollars in 2016. I will use this

information to understand how other organizations have helped Afghanistan with their

hunger problems.
"Half of Afghan Children Suffer Irreversible Harm from Malnutrition." ​The Guardian,​ Guardian

News and Media Limited, 26 Jan. 2014,

www.theguardian.com/world/2014/jan/26/afghan-children-harm-malnutrition-growth-de

velopment. Accessed 31 Jan. 2019.

This web page explains how 55 percent of Afghan children are stunted because they are

poorly nourished. Stunting is when a kid stops growing at a young age because of some

problems with the body. In this case, the problem is poor nourishment. They are not

getting enough food, so their bodies are not able to grow and develop! A woman named

Mojabeen, a thin 19 year old mother, lives in a poor, one room home. Her husband earns

2 or 3 dollars a day, which is not enough to feed a small family. Therefore, the family

suffers and goes hungry. Mojabeen's second child is living with Mojabeen's mother

because she can't provide for this child. Mojabeen was in lack of the nutrients she needed

when her children were inside her womb, so her children didn't get the right amount of

nutrients they needed when they were born. I can use this information to explain some of

the effects of hunger in Afghanistan.

Mashal, Mujib, and Taimoor Shah. "Afghan Hunger Strikers Demand Cease-Fire: 'Our Blood Is

Finished.'" ​The New York Times​, The New York Times Company, 29 Mar. 2018,

www.nytimes.com/2018/03/29/world/asia/afghan-helmand-hunger-strike.html. Accessed

31 Jan. 2019.

This news website is about the Taliban not keeping peace with Afghanistan. The Afghans

had claimed to go on hungry until the Taliban called peace. I will use this to understand

another reason why the Afghan are starving.

Nooria Receives Her Food Ration for Working on the Farm​. ​World Food Programme,​

www.wfp.org/stories/cultivating-hope-wfp-asset-creation-programme-helps-afghan-wom

en-feed-their-families. Accessed 30 Jan. 2019.

This picture shows me that an organization called World Food Programme donated food

to Afghanistan. This helps me understand the simple solution to the problem: donations.

In the picture, a bag of food lies on top of a table/chair-like item. A woman, whose name

is Nooria, receives the bag of food for working on a farm.

San Mateo High School Provides a Canned-Food Donation to Samaritan House. ​Samaritan

House​, samaritanhousesanmateo.org/students-food-drive/. Accessed 30 Jan. 2019.

This photograph shows canned food donations piled up in Samaritan House. This helps

me learn another solution to the hunger problem in Afghanistan: Canned-food drive for

Afghanistan.

7.4 Million Afghans Live with Hunger and Fear of Starvation, Millions More Rely on Food Help

and One in Five Children Die before the Age of Five.​ ​RAWA,​

www.rawa.org/temp/runews/2010/12/04/un-7-4-million-afghans-are-living-with-hunger-

and-fear-of-starvation.html. Accessed 30 Jan. 2019.

This photograph shows a young girl standing in front of a dirty, destroyed land, with a

very old and worn-down building behind her. There are tents around her, probably

because the families are poor and are starving. This helps me understand how extreme the

situation is, also according to the caption: one in five children die before the age of five.

Sharma, Sharan Prakash. "South Asia Struggles to Meet Targets on Health and Hunger." ​NCBI​,

18 Nov. 2006, doi:10.1136/bmj.39030.612847.DB. Accessed 16 Oct. 2018.

 "The forum identified mortality in children under 5 years old, maternal mortality, chronic

hunger, and sex discrimination as critical indicators for which South Asia faces

substantial challenges to meet the goals." "South Asia is not expected to meet targets

because more than 300 million people are still racked by chronic hunger. South Asia is

self sufficient in grain production, but because of inefficient distribution and lack of

access to resources the number of hungry people is increasing." "A total of 3.5 million

children die a year in the region before they reach 5 years old." This article is about South

Asians not being able to live normally throughout their daily lives because of the lack of

food. The word chronic would mean long lasting, so the hunger problem in South Asia is

lasting for a long time, which is really bad since many are starving. The fact that children

under 5 years old suffer too, from hunger, is really sad news, because that means the

hunger problem is so big that many babies don't get to live up to their years of

elementary. This helps me understand that it is a very serious problem, and had already

started to change the world into a sad place to live. The article explains how big the

problem is, and causes readers (me) to think how I can help to solve, or at least think of a

way to solve, the problem. I will use this information to prove that right now, there may

be some solutions or organizations to help however they can, but it doesn't seem to have

a great effect.

"10 Facts about Hunger in Afghanistan." ​World Food Programme,​

www.wfp.org/stories/10-facts-about-hunger-afghanistan. Accessed 9 Nov. 2018.

This web page about an organization shares ten facts about Afghanistan and its struggles

about hunger. It also shares how this organization (WFP) helped to support them. More
 than 1.5 million + 317,000 people are severely food insecure, and another 7.3 million

(more than 25 percent) are moderately food insecure. Approximately 60 percent of

children under five are stunted, which is caused by chronic malnutrition. "More than a

third of children under five years old, as well as 21 percent of women of reproductive

age, are underweight." And "5.3 million people are protein deficient." Food insecurity is

exacerbated by political instability, conflict, and disasters. About 400,000 people are

affected by disasters (droughts and floods) every year. "In remote areas often cut off by

winter, WFP positions 4,000 metric tons of food in areas that are made inaccessible by

snow - enough to support 219,000 people through the winter." In 2015, World Food

Programme gave food assistance to 1.5 million people. This information tells me what

causes the hunger problem to worsen in Afghanistan, and knowing these statistics and

effects, I can try making solutions for this problem. Through this information, I can also

see what has been tried and what can still be done.

Viola, Michael, et al. "Afghanistan Food Security Conditions and Causes: A Special Report by

the Famine Early Warning Systems Network (FEWS NET)." ​Reliefweb,​

USAID/Afghanistan, Aug. 2007,

reliefweb.int/sites/reliefweb.int/files/resources/A6811E4927047168492573D90007A4CF

-Full_Report.pdf. Accessed 28 Jan. 2019.

This web page says that some causes for Afghanistan's hunger are: A lack of employment

opportunities and there are low incomes. Lack of wheat and cereals in agriculture, and

relating back to the natural phenomenon, lack of water resources for agriculture. Lack of

education and health services, and declining livestock production. Also, speaking of
water, there was poor quality for drinking water. Adding to the economic problems, the

rural economy collapsed, mostly because of the two decades of war. Natural

phenomenons such as droughts contribute to making the problem of hunger worse. "It is

now estimated that an additional 1.9 million Afghans are food-insecure, raising the

current total of food insecure to approximately 10.4 million people." This helps me

understand that hunger is caused by many factors, and I can use this to explain the causes

of hunger in Afghanistan.