That Sheep May Safely Graze

The very mention of Afghanistan
conjures images of war, international power politics, the opium trade, and widespread
corruption. Yet the untold story of Afghanistan’s seemingly endless misfortune is
the disruptive impact that prolonged conflict has had on ordinary rural
Afghans, their culture, and the timeless relationship they share with their
land and animals. In rural Afghanistan, when animals die, livelihoods are lost,
families and communities suffer, and people may perish.

That Sheep May Safely Graze details
a determined effort, in the midst of war, to bring essential veterinary
services to an agrarian society that depends day in and day out on the
well-being and productivity of its animals, but which, because of decades of
war and the disintegration of civil society, had no reliable access to even the
most basic animal health care.

The book describes how, in the
face of many obstacles, a dedicated group of Afghan and expatriate
veterinarians working for a small nongovernmental organization (NGO) in Kabul was able to create a national
network of over 400 veterinary field units staffed by over 600 veterinary
paraprofessionals. These paravets were selected by their own communities and
then trained and outfitted by the NGO so that nearly every district in the
country that needed basic veterinary services now has reliable access to such
services.

Most notably, over a decade after
its inception and with Afghanistan still in free fall, this private sector,
district-based animal health program remains vitally active. The community-based
veterinary paraprofessionals continue to provide quality services to farmers
and herders, protecting their animals from the ravages of disease and improving
their livelihoods, despite the political upheavals and instability that continue
to plague the country. The elements contributing to this sustainability and their
application to programs for improved veterinary service delivery in developing
countries beyond Afghanistan are described in the narrative.