Gradually the farms have been split into cooperatives or joint stock companies. For the population there has hardly been any change, the people continue working as they did before. The main difference is that when the crop fails, the farm workers get nothing. Only one-quarter of the cultivated area has some form of irrigation. The rest relies on rain and that is why drought hit Ghonchi so very hard.
People are grateful for the food aid they are now getting.
Besides food aid, the drought appeal launched by the International Federation last September aimed to provide seeds for the beneficiaries. But the appeal had a poor response, so the seeds could not be included in the ongoing relief operation. The prospects for the rural areas look bleak. Apart from the agriculture, there is no employment and the migration is in the increase. Young men leave for Russia and many don't come back.