Health in Afghanistan

Health in Afghanistan remains poor but steadily improving.[1] It has been negatively affected by the nation's environmental issues and the decades of war since 1978.[2] The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) oversees all matters concerning the health of the country's residents. The Human Rights Measurement Initiative finds that Afghanistan is fulfilling 72.5% of what it should be fulfilling for the right to health based on its level of income.[3]

Afghanistan is generally considered a poor and least developed country.[4][5][6] From 2001 to 2021, Afghanistan experienced improvements in health, with life expectancy increasing from 56 to 64 years.[7][8][9][10][11] Maternal mortality rate was reduced by half,[7] with the rate estimated at 638 deaths/100,000 live births and its infant mortality rate estimated at 106 per 1,000 live births in 2021.[12][8] Nearly 90% of residents living in cities had access to clean water in 2021, compared to 16% in 2001.[7] Afghanistan is one of the only two remaining countries that has not eradicated polio.[13] Around 16,000 people die annually from various forms of cancer.[14] Around 1,000 or more die in traffic collision each year.[15][16] Around 380 children die from measles.[17]

  1. ^ "285 Health Centers to Be Built in Country: Official". TOLOnews. November 25, 2023. Retrieved 2023-12-04.
  2. ^ "What's the Status of Healthcare for Women in Afghanistan Under the Taliban?". PBS. August 9, 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  3. ^ "Afghanistan - Human Rights Tracker". rightstracker.org. Retrieved 2023-05-01.
  4. ^ "Doctors Without Borders Reports on Afghanistan's Economy, Health Needs". TOLOnews. February 7, 2023. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  5. ^ "Afghans Adapting to Economic Decline, Social Restrictions". United States Institute of Peace. November 30, 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  6. ^ "World Bank Survey: Living Conditions Remain Dire for the Afghan People". World Bank. November 22, 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  7. ^ a b c "Counting the costs of America's 20-year war in Afghanistan". AP NEWS. 30 April 2021. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  8. ^ a b "Afghanistan: Human Development Indicators". United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). Retrieved 2021-03-10.
  9. ^ "WHO | Afghanistan".
  10. ^ "Afghanistan" (PDF). World Health Organization (WHO). Retrieved 2017-05-20.
  11. ^ "Afghanistan". UNESCO. 27 November 2016. Retrieved 2017-05-20.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference Factbook was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ Cite error: The named reference Afghanistan, Pakistan meet to discuss spread of poliovirus was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  14. ^ Cite error: The named reference MoPH: Cancer cases on the rise in Afghanistan was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  15. ^ "Officials: Traffic Incidents Decreased in Afghanistan Compared to Last Year". TOLOnews. November 21, 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  16. ^ "Nearly 3,000 people killed, injured in traffic accidents in past 9-month". Pajhwok Afghan News. December 16, 2022. Retrieved 2023-02-08.
  17. ^ Cite error: The named reference TOLO-180922 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).