Afghanistan is undergoing tremendous change as a new government attempts to overcome years of isolation, misrule, civil war, and drought. The international community has pledged billions of dollars in aid to help Afghans reconstruct their country – but international aid has been slow in arriving and insecurity, food shortages, and lack of infrastructure continue to be monumental problems.

Larry Thompson will examine the plight of the two million Afghan refugees who returned home this year from Pakistan and Iran. Many of the refugees have not yet had the time or the opportunity to find a livelihood and will be dependent upon international aid this winter to survive. The Afghan government, in cooperation with aid agencies, has formulated plans to help needy Afghans this winter, but shortages of food and other resources may be serious and access to some remote, snow-bound regions may be difficult. In the worse case scenario, Afghans—who just returned home after years of exile abroad—might find it necessary to leave their homes again to seek life-saving help in the cities or in neighboring countries.

On RI’s last visit to Afghanistan in June 2002, we perceived that many returning refugees seemed to have few prospects to make a living. Employment opportunities were severely limited in the cities and farmers were hindered by continued drought plus shortages of seeds and other agricultural inputs. On this mission, Larry will look at how Afghan returnees have progressed in finding jobs and occupations to support themselves and their families. He will also assess the overall progress with the relief and reconstruction effort and examine the impact of day-to-day security on the overall humanitarian situation.