Bano Zai

1. Community demographics

According to key informant interviews conducted with local authority figures, there are approximately 200 - 500 households with 9000 – 1400 people living in Bano Zai (1). The village neighbourhood is almost entirely comprised of Pashtuns and Pashto is the most widely spoken language. Key informants stated there was an IDP population living in Tor Gul Town with relatives having come from Zurmat district in Paktia, but did not know overall numbers. Approximately 20 returnee families also live in Tor Gul Town and came from Pakistan, with this number expected to rise in the spring. It was considered very likely that most people in the community will continue living in Bano Zai in the near future.

(1) The discrepancy comes between two different authority figures and could be based on different understandings of what constitutes the boundaries of Bano Zai.

2. Community geography

The village is located on mostly flat ground or slightly hilly terrain. The Charrkan River flows at the bottom of Suliman Mountain near the village and provides a water source along with waterspouts in the old village and the Darbal to the east of the village. The single storey mud houses are interspersed across a large, flat area and have gardens and orchards between them. The key non-residential buildings in the village are a mosque and a school.

3. Economic profile

The majority of the village work in agriculture. This work is seasonal, with little to no work during the winter. The school teacher also does not work in winter. Some people are involved in wholesale and others work in retail stores. Other people work as daily wage labourers across any industry they can find work in but may experience regular periods of unemployment, with the most stable employment being people who work for the government in the military or in the civil service. A very limited number of households are engaged in tailoring or handicrafts in the home.

4. Energy profile

Bano Zai is not connected to the electrical grid. Almost the entire neighbourhood use stand-alone solar panels with low capacity, with very few households using diesel generator power. The majority of households use wood and mountain thorns in mud-brick ovens for cooking, with a very limited number of households having iron stoves. Most of the households use wood for heating but some members of the community also use gas.