?

Afghan farmers harvest wheat in Sholgara district of the northern Balkh Province of Afghanistan, June 25, 2019. The heavily drought affected Afghanistan is now recuperating as officials give good news about high estimation of wheat products which have shown increase in the current year against the wheat harvested in 2018. In the current year, according to the estimation, the total wheat products would exceed 5.1 million tons showing 1.52 million tons increase, compared to last year's wheat products, in the country with over 50 percent of about 35 million population living under poverty line. (Xinhua/Kawa Basharat)

KABUL, June 27 (Xinhua) -- The heavily drought affected Afghanistan is now recuperating as officials give good news about high estimation of wheat products which have shown increase in the current year against the wheat harvested in 2018.

In the current year, according to the estimation, the total wheat products would exceed 5.1 million tons showing 1.52 million tons increase, compared to last year's wheat products, in the country with over 50 percent of about 35 million population living under poverty line.

Afghanistan's demand for wheat is about six million tons in the current year, and wheat deficit will be around 900,000 in 2019, according to Akbar Rustami, the spokesman for the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock.

The result of a joint survey conducted by Afghan Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock, National Statistics Organization, in cooperation with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and World Food Program (WFP) shows that wheat yields will increase by over 42 percent this year.

"With an increase of 42 percent of wheat yields, wheat imports worth 400 million U.S. dollar have been prevented," Rostami said a couple of days ago.

In the past several years, severe drought together with rampant conflicts have forced hundreds of households to leave their residence to seek food and shelter in capital Kabul city or safer areas elsewhere in the country.

Increase in wheat products this year, as the estimation shows, will have major impact on the reduction of poverty, the official said, adding every Afghan citizen can consume about 62 kg of flour annually.