At a conference on agricultural development in the eastern region of Afghanistan, officials from the Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock and Irrigation and military leaders came together to discuss development projects aimed at improving the livelihoods of farmers and access to top quality materials.
"Sufficient food, in a sustainable, healthy, economic and halal way should be accessible to all our citizens," Deputy Minister Imamuddin Haidari said. "This is one of the major goals of the Ministry of Agriculture, and the second goal is to increase employment for our people."
Officials said they would need to coordinate with security institutions to pursue their desired programs, given the volatility of many areas in the eastern provinces of Afghanistan, which border the restive tribal areas of Pakistan.
The Commander of the Afghan Army's 201 Battalion of Nangarhar said he was ready to cooperate as much as was needed with the Ministry of Agriculture for improving local agricultural conditions.
"If governance, development and reconstruction are not provided to the people, security will not improve," 201 Battalion Commander General Muhammad Zaman Waziri said. "We assure that we will take preparations for every government project and we hope that it's the same in other areas."