In Afghanistan, a serious humanitarian crisis persists, exacerbated since the Taliban seized power in August 2021. Some 69% of the population has no access to sufficient resources to meet its basic needs. The situation has been exacerbated by earthquakes, drought, economic instability, climate change and the influx of returnees at the border…

Women and girls are the first victims of this violence. Afghanistan is the worst country in the world in which to be born a girl. Erased from society, deprived of education, work, freedom of movement, freedom of dress… Women’s and girls’ rights are scorned with every passing day.

Seven out of ten Afghan citizens are deprived of access to essential health services, placing a heavy burden on women and girls in the context of the economic crisis. Over two million children suffer from malnutrition. With their immune systems weakened, they are more likely to die from infectious diseases. The delivery of humanitarian aid remains limited.

Pio Smith, UNFPA Regional Director for Asia and the Pacific, highlighted the devastating impact on women and girls during a December 2023 visit to Herat province, where feelings of despair and suicidal thoughts predominate due to human crises and earthquakes. Ms. Smith stresses the urgent need for psychological and social support to help women and girls.

→ 50 000 girls and women benefiting from the project

→ 24 women die every day in childbirth (2020, OMS)

Women can hardly practice medicine in Afghanistan any more. And yet, it is mostly women who treat other women, creating a de facto shortage and, above all, a health hazard for women and girls. To date, health is the only area in which the Taliban still accept foreign humanitarian aid.

In the midst of this crisis, the Stand Speak Rise Up! emergency health project is working to provide essential health services to mothers and children in the province of Nuristan. With a population of around 167,000 people working in agriculture, livestock and day labor, Nuristan faces seasonal climatic changes. The main aim of the project is to reduce mortality, particularly among children and women giving birth.

Objectives and planned actions :

• Training women doctors (training, distribution of medical equipment, etc.)
• Reduction of infant mortality (distribution of sterilized delivery kits, distribution of nutrients for infants, vaccination campaigns, etc.).
• Preventing women’s health (raising awareness of female cancers, gynecological check-ups, etc.).