Introduction
This report compiles analysis of the Alcis compound data for south west Afghanistan against other datasets to identify if there has been progression in attaining several of the UN's Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), specifically SDG3, SDG9 and SDG10. A variety of GIS analytical tools were used to identify changes from 2014 and 2019, and this analysis will help to guide future development projects in the region through highlighting where improvement is needed the most.
Between 2014 and 2019, the number of compounds in south west Afghanistan increased from 543,832 to 745,410 (Figure 1). Due to the size of the dataset, this report will mainly focus on the Helmand province, which had 235,145 and 346,383 compounds in 2014 and 2019, respectively.
This rise in the number of compounds has occurred due to the expansion of agriculture in the region (Mansell and Alston pers comms, 2020). Figure 2 highlights this expansion through the NDVI for both cropping cycles in 2014 and 2019, displaying the growth in agricultural land, as well as the regions with high vegetative activity (green areas).
Whilst this is positive in terms of decreasing the existing poverty and famine in the region (Alston pers comms, 2020), the increase in compounds has altered the achievement of certain SDGS in the region.
Sustainable Development Goal 3
Good health and wellbeing
Sustainable Development Goal 9
Infrastructure
Source: UN (2020)
Sustainable Development Goal 10
Reduced inequalities
Source: UN (2020)
Recommendation section
The above analysis suggests mixed progression towards several SDGs between 2014 and 2019. For SDG3, the expansion of Health Facilities is required to enable a higher proportion of compounds to have fair access to them. Similarly, whilst the number of compounds with access to no infrastructure decreased (SDG9), an improvement in cell tower range is needed to increase access of individuals to a mobile network. Finally, the location of the nearest polling stations to compounds (SDG10) remained considerable in both years in certain regions, suggesting future investment in this SDG should focus on increasing the regional extent of polling stations in Helmand province.
Reference List
Alston, M., (2020). Project presentation from Madeleine Alston. 14 February.
Mansell, D. and Alston, M., (2020). Practical guide from Damien Mansell. 15 February.
UN, (n.d.a). Sustainable Development Goals knowledge platform: Sustainable Development Goal 3. [Online]. [Accessed on 30 March 2020]. Available at: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg3
UN, (n.d.c). Sustainable Development Goals knowledge platform: Sustainable Development Goal 9. [Online]. [Accessed on 30 March 2020]. Available at: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg9
UN, (n.d.c). Sustainable Development Goals knowledge platform: Sustainable Development Goal 10. [Online]. [Accessed on 30 March 2020]. Available at: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdg10
UN, (2020). Sustainable Development goals. [Online]. [Accessed on 31 March 2020]. Available at: https://sustainabledevelopment.un.org/sdgs
