UNICEF: One-Third of Pregnant Women in Afghanistan Give Birth Outside Health Centers

In a report published on Monday (July 15), UNICEF stated that over 67 percent of births in Afghanistan are attended by a skilled health professional.

UNICEF emphasized that "although pregnant mothers should meet with a skilled doctor at least four times before delivery, only one-third of women in Afghanistan do so."

The organization noted, "when mothers give birth outside a health center or without a skilled healthcare provider, the mother's life is at serious risk."

This report comes at a time when the delivery of health services in Afghanistan has been in crisis since the Taliban took power.

The Taliban have been unable to manage this crisis over the past three years and have failed to provide healthcare services to all citizens in both rural and urban areas.

In January last year, Agence France-Presse 24, quoting Stéphane Dujarric, the spokesperson for the United Nations, reported that every two hours, one mother dies during childbirth in Afghanistan.

The outlet also quoted Filipe Ribeiro, head of Doctors Without Borders in Afghanistan, who stated that access to prenatal and postnatal care for women in Afghanistan has always been very complex and has become even more complicated today.