Dawlatabad

1. Community demographics

According to key informant interviews conducted with local authority figures there are approximately 416 households with 2912 people living in Dawlatabad and Naw Abad villages. These estimates were taken from a Ministry of Rural Rehabilitation and Development (MRRD) and National Solidarity Program (NSP) census report almost 8 years ago, so these numbers may have changed. The village is comprised of 3 ethnic groups and approximately 40% are Uzbek, 30% are Tajik and 20% are Arabs. The major language is Dari with Uzbek being spoken between Uzbeks. Local authority figures stated they did not know of any IDP or returnee families living in the community. Key informants did not expect the population of the village to change very much over the coming years.

2. Community geography

Dawlatabad is located on flat terrain with farmlands to the west of the village, a mountain to the north and a paved road to the south. A river runs near to the village and is used by animals for drinking. The village lies in a flood-zone and floods in April and May can cause destruction to potable water wells and agriculture.

The one-storey houses in the village are constructed from adobe clay, mudbricks and strategically placed stones with timber roofs. The only non-residential building in the village is a mosque also built from mud. A boys school for villages in the area is located about 3km away from Dawlatabad. Although Dawlatabad does not have a clinic, 3 medical staff (including 2 women) visit the village every 3 months and bring medicine and vaccinations. People experiencing illness go to clinics or the hospital in the district centre.

3. Economic profile

The primary industry in Dawlatabad is agriculture. People raise livestock or tend to orchards and farms. Local authority figures spoke about how some community members travelled to Mazar-e-Sharif and worked in brick processing factories or worked as civil servants or teachers. Some community members go abroad to look for work in places such as Turkey.

Key informants spoke about how people are mainly interested in feeding their families following patterns through-out the year. They gave an example that many households were said to follow, which included raising 10-15 sheep in November and December before selling them some months later and using the subsequent revenue to buy farm seeds. Community members grow wheat and millet, vegetables such as onions, fruits such as melon as well as cotton. Some people work as labourers in the summer, working in construction, carpenters or tailors.

4. Energy profile

Almost the whole community access 240V grid electricity imported by DABS that was said to power any device. A DABS representative stated that electricity was available across the whole Hazrat Sultan District. A local authority figure said because Dawlatabad covers a large area, a limited number of households might be using stand-alone solar system. There are 4 transformers in the village. Electricity is available 24 hours a day and outages occur very rarely. The only concern local authority figures had was the stability of the energy contract between Afghanistan and Tajikistan along with whether conflict could disrupt the electrical route.

People use animal dung for cooking and heating because it is free and collected by children from the desert and the mountains after drying in the sun. People also use wood from the fields for heating and poorer people collect a mountain thorn called posh.