Narqese

1. Community demographics

According to key informant interviews conducted with local authority figures, there are approximately 900-1100 households with 4500-11,000 people living in Narqese (1). The villagers are all Pashtuns and speak Pashto. Key informants did not speak about IDP or returnees living in the community. It was considered very likely that most people in the community will continue living in Narqese in the near future. Some people were cited as moving to the United Arab Emirates for work and sending remittance back to their families, but local authority figures said other movement away from the area was unlikely because people considered the area to be their home and cited the security situation as excellent.

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

2. Community geography

The community of Narqese is comprised of six smaller villages. Narqese is located close to the Pakistan border in hilly terrain close to high mountains. Narqese lies in the hills north-east of Chamkani. Dand Patan district lies to the east and the Chamkani-Dand Patan main road is located directly to the south of Narqese.

The houses are made from mud and stones, with a limited number made from concrete. The houses are compounds and stand one- or two-storeys tall, with some reaching three- or four-storeys. The non-residential buildings include a school, a clinic, and some shops in the middle of the village. These smaller shops cater basic goods to the community but there is no bazaar, so people travel to Gardez Bazaar for larger purchases.

A river flows through the middle of the area and the cheenas (waterspouts) and kareez (underground water that flows from one well to another) are the major source of water and lie in the middle of the village. The National Solidarity Program (NSP) has constructed 3 new kareez in recent years along with retaining walls for the well system assisting irrigation and drinking water. Older houses are more densely located in the village but newly constructed houses are usually spread out over the hilly areas of the community.

3. Economic profile

The majority of the village work in agriculture, but unemployment was cited as a problem along with less agricultural lands to work. Other members of the community work as daily wage labourers in the construction industry. This work is seasonal, with little to no work during the winter. Some members of the community have migrated to the United Arab Emirates to work and send remittance back to the community. Local authority figures noted a very limited number of households might be engaged in tailoring but were highly uncertain.

4. Energy profile

Most of the community use stand-alone solar panels that only have capacity for lighting. Poorer households who cannot afford solar panels use fuel lanterns. Most of the households use wood for cooking and heating, with a minority of households using LPG.

A solar system was cited as costing approximately 25,000 – 30,000 AFN (US$367 - US$441). Wood costs approximately 10 – 11.5 AFN (US$0.14 - $0.17) per kilogram.

On speaking about changes over the coming years:

Villages Administration Manager -

“I think the community will change positively, it will be connected to the grid power where people would be able to produce local products."

Village Malik –

“I hope for positive changes that government or NGOs will intervene in job creation to eradicate the poverty and will improve our living standards.”