Winterization Assistance for Vulnerable and PLW Households in Ghor and Daykundi Vulnerable populations in Ghor and Daykundi face a complex set of needs. Drought, political instability, and Covid-19 have led to widespread illness and mortality and starkly reduced income opportunities in these provinces, depleting households’ productive assets and reducing their capacity to cope with shocks and prepare for winter. Afghanaid’s recent needs assessment (annexed) found that numerous households in Ghor and Daykundi need urgent assistance to cover their needs through the especially long, harsh winter in these provinces.

In line with ESNFI cluster priorities for this allocation, Afghanaid proposes to provide crucial heating assistance to a total of 1,520 vulnerable households (380 households per district) in Dawlatyar and Dolayna districts of Ghor, and Shahristan and Khedir districts of Daykundi, all of which have harsh winter climates and are noted as priority locations in the Joint Winterization Plan and the cluster’s priorities for this allocation. Based on community preferences and a market assessment, Afghanaid proposes cash as the modality for the heating assistance.

The intervention will provide all targeted households with a ESNFI cluster standard cash for heating package with a value of US$200 per household, to cover the purchase of a heater and heating fuel for at least three months. In consultation with communities, the assistance will be delivered in a single tranche project staff will consult the communities on any anticipated protection risks. We will work with an established saraf (the local term for Hawala agent) in both provinces to distribute cash from central distribution points.

Afghanaid will form participant selection and distribution committees, with local community representatives, such as leaders of Community Development Councils (CDCs) and District Development Assemblies (DDAs), and Afghanaid staff. Participants will be selected using ESNFI vulnerability criteria to ensure that households in most acute need are targeted, including displaced households, women-headed households and households with a large number of dependents. In line with ESNFI cluster priorities, Afghanaid will ensure that at least 32% of the selected households include pregnant or lactating women (PLW) we will work with partners assigned by the Nutrition Cluster to provide these PLW with additional assistance. We will also provide the 488 households with PLW (122 per district) with a cluster-recommended cash package of US$65 for winter clothing, and an in-kind blanket kit with a value of US$55.

Afghanaid is well placed to implement this project, with over 20 years of continuous presence in Ghor and 5 years in Daykundi, current operations in all target districts, excellent access and strong relationships with communities. Afghanaid has extensive humanitarian programming experience, with current and recent humanitarian projects in multiple provinces including Ghor and Daykundi funded by AHF, WFP and FAO. The proposed winterization project would form part of a multi-cluster response complemented by our ongoing FSAC-funded agricultural assistance project in these districts Afghanaid is also developing a proposal for FSAC for food assistance to these and other districts, so as to meet target communities’ needs comprehensively. Afghanaid has approval from local authorities to deliver its programmes in the target areas, and will actively engage local IEA actors to explain that the project can only proceed if authorities do not interfere in participant selection and permit us to employ and target women.

This intervention is expected to provide 1,520 vulnerable households (10,640 men, women, boys and girls) with crucial heating, clothing and blanket assistance, help target households meet their basic needs, reduce illness and mortality, and increase participants’ capacity to rebuild their livelihoods by avoiding the sale of productive assets, boosting resilience against future shocks.