A Comment on Women!

Afghanistan and the role of women in the society has been making a big splash in the international media in the last week or so, thanks to some legislation that by most standards is pretty anti-women. I am not going to pretend to be an expert in the incredibly complex area of gender equality, or individual rights versus group think, but I do have some comments on the activities our project is undertaking in gender equality.
Women often have a central role in food production of traditional households, mostly in kitchen gardens and livestock - especially poultry. This role is being supported by a number of projects in Afghanistan, but our project has moved beyond these usual topics.
Under our project, we have organised 'Horticulture Interest Groups' of male farmers - basically a self help group of up to 25 farmers who gather to learn and share knowledge. Alongside these male groups, the project has supported the development of equivalent female groups, and have been surprised at the level of acceptance, enthusiasm and interest this has generated.
In the last month or so, the project has provided 150 female farmers with enough saplings to establish a small commercial orchard, as well as providing the groups with other farm inputs and training so they can operate their own demonstration sites.
It is a small start, but amongst all the bad news, it is a great example of a successful program that we hope will grow and expand over the coming seasons.