Women-led backyard poultry farm becomes a reliable occupation for vulnerable households in Maidan Wardak Province

Even though Ziba and her family have been experiencing poverty for years, they never considered that it could be through Ziba that their economic conditions could improve. As a housewife and mother of eight, she worked hard for the wellbeing of her family, but often found that their funds could not meet their expenses.

This situation took a positive turn when Ziba was selected as a beneficiary of the UNODC Alternative Development (AD) project in 2018. With the help of the project, she was able to build a chicken coop and was provided with pullets, and equipment to run a sustainable backyard poultry farm. She was also trained by an experienced trainer in basic poultry management and linked to the nearby market and milk and egg collection centre.

“Before this intervention, I had no specific job and got money from my husband for anything I needed. But now I have my own poultry farm and I am very pleased with the income that I earn from selling eggs. It has enabled me to contribute to my family’s expenses, children's education, and pay for my own expenses such as for clothes and other needs”.

Over time, the income from her poultry farm improved and she became the main breadwinner of her family. With encouragement from her husband and technical assistance from the project staff, she increased her pullets from 20 to 40.  

Even though, the project phased out in 2020, the women beneficiaries, like Ziba, continue to use the skills they learnt to support their family and themselves.

Ziba’s home-based entrepreneurship and her newly acquired skills became all the more valuable for her family when the Taliban took over Afghanistan on 15 August 2021.

Unfortunately, market price for other necessary food items have gone up and less people are buying eggs.

“The Taliban takeover affected everything. I had to sell 20 of my pullets to buy flour, rice, and cooking oil during the first months of the Taliban takeover.”

However, Ziba continues her poultry farm with the remaining pullets she has and is able to provide her family with nutritious eggs at a time when many families across the country are struggling for square meals.

Currently Ziba has 20 pullets in her poultry farm and on average sells 20 eggs per day to earn AFN 6,000 per month.

“I am thankful to the project as it helps my family to survive during this hard time.”