Paper short abstract

Despite 15 years of investment in Afghanistan, food security and poverty have worsened. This paper explores possibilities behind that decline, with a central focus on structural violence.

Paper long abstract

This report offers an examination of the causes behind Afghanistan's limited improvements in poverty rates, food security, and access to services. It does so by exploring the livelihood trajectories of seventy two households in five villages in Herat and Kandahar between 2002-03 and 2014-15.

This research shows the majority of households have experienced worsened poverty, while seeing an improvement in access to public services. In both study sites land ownership is segregated - in areas that land ownership is highly unequal, the land rich often comprise the local elites. They frequently have links to provincial level powerbrokers, make decisions on local development, and importantly, hold dominion over on-farm work opportunities in the village, which creates conditions for structural violence.

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