By LOCKIE GARY, Hardee County Extension Director, Livestock Specialist

WAUCHULA, FL -- My third trip to Afghanistan seemed routine enough. Thirty two hours of air travel had numbed and exhausted me. From Orlando to London to Dubai and finally into Kabul. The chaos and abject poverty of Afghanistan's capital city has a way of waking up the weary traveler who only hours before enjoyed the opulence and sophistication of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates. But this assignment would be anything but routine.

After hauling my five duffel bags across three hundred yards of dusty rock to the unsecured parking lot, I was met by my professional driver, Abdul Samay, whom I immediately recognized from two previous assignments. It was good to see a friendly face after the hassle and intimidation of wrestling for your luggage and going through security on arrival at the dimly lit and fetid airport in Kabul. We drove to an unmarked office in a residential area of Kabul for my briefing.

Scope of Work

I was briefed by Jim Herne, Chief of Party for Land O' Lakes International Division in Afghanistan. The briefing consisted of a review of my assignment objectives and duties, introductions to my interpreter, scheduled farm visits, assignment of drivers and a full security briefing. My objective for the next 15 days was to train veterinarians in prevention, recognition and treatment of cattle diseases endemic to northern Afghanistan, synchronize non-pregnant dairy cattle for insemination and to conduct Breeding Soundness Examinations on local dairy bulls.

Additionally, I was being asked to train nine women farmers who we would refer to as Extension Agents. They had been selected from among 400 female farmers who were interviewed. Forty of these women had been found suitable for testing and of these nine had been selected as Extension Agents because of their literacy skills. Each of them could read and write at a competency level we in America take for granted. The reader should consider that prior to the U.S. led invasion of Afghanistan in 2001, girls were not allowed to attend school. They might learn to read at their mother's knee in the privacy of their home but were never allowed to attend school with boys. The Taliban forbade it and the Taliban ruled with an iron fist until they were overthrown by the U.S. and the Northern Alliance in 2001.

These nine ladies would be trained in personal hygiene, hand washing and hand milking procedures, stable sanitation and basic dairy cattle nutrition and reproduction. We would begin at 7:30 a.m. and work together until 4:30 p.m. every day except for Friday. Friday is a day of prayer in Muslim Afghanistan. This training took place during Ramadan so we could not eat or drink anything until the daily fast was broken at sundown. If the reader thinks that this does not require stamina and discipline, just try it. Go ahead, try it today!

All the training was to take place in a sequestered facility in the basement. The hands-on training with the cattle took place in a high walled, obscure facility away from the villages where farmers had been asked to trail their livestock to us. This required a great sacrifice as many farmers walked for miles to their appointment with us.

Area of Assignment

My assignment was to take place in the province of Kunduz in northern Afghanistan. We were only 50 kilometers south of Tajikistan and approximately four hours by truck west of the border with China. Kunduz was the last major city held by the Taliban before its fall to the US-backed Afghan Northern Alliance forces on November 26, 2001. Before its fall, witnesses reported seeing Pakistani aircraft airlifting up to 5,000 Taliban and Al-Qaeda troops from the city.

The people are known for their independent spirit and tribal tendencies. They live in a remote desert area surrounded by mountains. Getting to Kunduz from Kabul requires a trip over the 15,000 foot Salang Pass. Expatriates refer to this area as the Grand Canyon of Afghanistan. The road was built by the Soviets as a gift to Afghanistan. It would later be used for tank and troop transport by Soviet forces when they invaded Afghanistan in December of 1979.

As one crawls up the narrow road full of switchbacks one cannot help but notice the white paint splashed on rock outcroppings. The rocks have been painted by U.S. and international mine sweeping crews to indicate where it is now safe to travel. The Soviet tank crews would place land mines around their encampments so now the mountains along the Salang Pass are littered with mines. Children tending their family herd of goats are frequently killed or wounded by these mines. At the current rate of extraction it is estimated that it would take another 1,100 years to remove the several million land mines left in Afghanistan by Soviet military forces.

Although the Kunduz area is mainly desert, rice is grown in the foothills of the Hindu Kush mountain range. The snowmelt is used for irrigation and teams of oxen were seen cultivating the land. The rice harvest was concluding when I arrived in early October but groups of men could be seen winnowing rice on the threshing floors. Countless times I witnessed men stop whatever task they were performing, spread out their prayer cloth and face toward Mecca for prayer.

As I traveled onto the desert I would frequently stop to inspect the vegetation which was often nothing more than a shrub called "camel thorn." It has a very sharp thorn which will instantly draw blood.

I was amazed to see first-hand how well the camel, sheep and goats thrive on the desert. Temperature extremes in the fall range from 100 degrees F in the daytime to 35 degrees in the evening. Women and children spend many hours in the fall cutting camel thorn with hand sickles. The plant dries in a few days and is placed into a windrow by women with wooden forks. Then men come through the area with a caravan of camels. Protective blankets are placed onto the camels' backs and the dried plants are loaded onto the camels and used for fuel. It occurred to me to take some solar powered stoves with me on a return trip. Water can be boiled on a cold day with plenty of sunlight without fuel. The stoves are sold in the U.S. and are made of folded cardboard covered with aluminum foil.

Training Women Extension Agents and Veterinarians

The Dairy Industry Revitalization Project for Afghanistan is being implemented by Land O' Lakes International and the US-Afghan Reconstruction Council. Women Extension Agents are being used to provide technical assistance directly to local women dairy farmers. Nine women participated in an intensive training program to help them improve the services they provide to area farmers. Classroom training and practical field demonstrations were held for the Extension Agents and the four veterinarians that are employed by the project.

The training program for the women included topics such as sanitation, hand milking procedures, feeding practices, health care and animal welfare. The attitude of the agents was helpful and cooperative. Each day they came to class eager and excited to learn. They were especially respectful and appreciative. They worked well together and there was a high level of attention and an eagerness to learn among each of them. They asked good questions and there were many lively discussions among them during class.

On a previous assignment I had been scolded for paying too much attention to the women's feet. I explained that my reasoning was to differentiate one woman from another as I was forbidden to look into their eyes. In anticipation of this problem I asked that name tags be provided for each of the nine students. I was at all times careful to observe cultural norms and respect Islamic traditions which are very strictly adhered to in rural Afghanistan. After one of my initial trainings with the women Extension Agents, I was approached in private by a high ranking Afghan official and told the following, "Get this straight Dr. Gary. You see that cow! She has more value than a woman in Afghanistan. A cow can produce a calf and it can be milked. A woman can be bred but she cannot be sold. What value does she have?"

The four veterinarians on the project were trained in the field working directly with cows brought in by project farmers. It was apparent early on that the vets lacked field experience with live animals and they needed more hands-on experience to gain confidence in their abilities and to improve their skill level. The veterinarians tended to treat symptoms instead of emphasizing preventive medicine. All they need is more time with the livestock and a little encouragement. All of them were like dry sponges soaking up all the information provided and asking for more.

It was not possible to make personal visits to the homes of the farmers because of the cultural differences regarding the interaction between men and women. This is a sensitive issue which comes up frequently during my assignments but over time it is possible to arrange such visits once the farmers become familiar with project staff and volunteers. The Extension Agents are ready and willing to assist in making these arrangements.

Lessons Learned

It seems not to matter how many times I travel to Third World countries. Passing through customs on the way home is always a hassle. I have been intimidated, abused, misinformed and often lied to. I am always puzzled at being charged for overweight luggage when I am returning home with two to three fewer suitcases. Items of value have been confiscated and often stolen. The waiting and false starts to board the plane seem endless. When you are exhausted from giving your all and emotionally spent you seem to be more sensitive.

When the plane finally takes off and I know I am on the way home it hits me. The tears begin to flow. I am finally still and can hear the Lord speaking to me. I am reminded that I have been commanded to go. My childhood experience on the farm, all my agricultural education and my life's work in managing livestock operations were simply preparation for ministry.

How will these folks in such remote areas of the world ever hear the message? The Word lives inside me and wants to get out. The world needs the Good News. The faces of the Kuchi men loading our camels, the boys in the fields gathering camel thorn for fuel, the women carrying heavy burdens from the fields Ñ all these images flood my mind. I am reminded that God sent Jesus for each of us. During these moments the teacher becomes the student and the Lord reminds me how blessed I am to be born in America and how much of life I take for granted.

The scriptures tell us, "For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also" and "To whom much is given much shall be required." This type of ministry is not for everyone but it is the assignment I have been given and it has become my passion.

I am looking forward to leaving for Yemen soon.