A growing crisis looms over Afghanistan’s southern provinces as public health systems report a severe and worsening shortage of female doctors and midwives. The issue, fueled by Taliban-era restrictions on women’s education and training, has left many rural clinics unable to offer even basic maternal care.
In provinces such as Uruzgan, Kandahar, and Zabul, the absence of female health workers is forcing many women to either forgo essential medical care or turn to male doctors—whom most women are reluctant to visit due to cultural sensitivities.
Uruzgan Province: “Only Two Female Specialists for an Entire Province”
In Uruzgan, a remote province with 108 government-run hospitals and clinics, health authorities confirm that only two female specialist doctors are currently working—one in the capital, Tarinkot, and another in Deh Rahwod district. A senior official from the Provincial Directorate of Public Health, speaking on condition of anonymity, told the Afghan Times:
“Many posts for women remain vacant. In some clinics, male doctors are treating female patients because there are simply no women available.”
The source added that although some midwives were previously employed, many left their positions due to growing restrictions on women working with NGOs or the suspension of programs. As a result, several posts intended for female staff have either been filled by male workers or remain vacant.
Kandahar: Families Left Without Access to Essential Women’s Care
In Kandahar—Southern Afghanistan’s largest province—more than 120 health centers are currently operational, with much of their funding provided by the World Health Organization. Yet even in this comparatively better-equipped region, a critical shortage of female healthcare professionals has left many women without access to essential reproductive and maternal care.
Arifa, a 55-year-old resident of Shah Wali Kot district, described the challenges she faced during her daughter’s pregnancy:
“We searched every clinic for a female doctor, but none were available. Throughout the pregnancy, my daughter had to see male doctors because there was no alternative. We had serious concerns about her health, and there was no one to speak to about women’s needs specifically.”
Health officials in Kandahar confirmed that numerous rural districts currently have no female doctors, nurses, or midwives available. The lack of trained female staff means many women are either untreated or receive delayed care, significantly increasing the risks of complications during pregnancy and childbirth.
According to local health workers, the shortage is not just about availability but about systemic breakdown:
“We don’t have a pipeline of female professionals anymore. Schools are closed, training is suspended, and those who worked in the system have either left or been reassigned. Clinics remain open, but vital services for women no longer function.”
This breakdown, they warn, is leaving large portions of the population—especially women and girls—without the care they urgently need.
Zabul: Training Centers Closed, Midwives Vanishing
Zabul province faces an equally dire situation. With 77 active health centers, very few have female staff. While some clinics still retain a handful of midwives, a local health source noted that these are remnants from training programs shut down years ago:
“The last group of 23 midwives graduated four years ago. Since then, training institutes have closed, and no new female health workers have entered the system.”
The closure of midwifery schools, once supported by international NGOs, has cut off a vital supply chain of skilled women in healthcare.
Education Bans Crippling Health Workforce
Since 2021, the Taliban has closed schools and universities for women, leading to what experts call a “generational collapse” in Afghanistan’s female medical workforce.
According to data compiled from NGOs and international agencies (as of 19 June 2025):
• Afghanistan currently has only 10.3 health workers per 10,000 people, far below the WHO minimum of 44.5 needed for basic coverage.
• Only 18% of specialist doctors in the country are female, and female nurses/midwives make up just 29% of that workforce.
• More than 65% of advertised posts for female staff remain vacant in provinces like Kandahar, Zabul, and Uruzgan—many since 2022.
• No female graduates have emerged from medical or midwifery programs in southern provinces for over two years.
• Training investment has plummeted. NGOs now allocate less than 5% of health budgets to training, compared to 35% in 2020.
• Maternal mortality is on the rise, particularly in rural districts, due to the absence of female staff and cultural refusal to consult male doctors.Future Outlook: “Collapse Is Inevitable If This Continues”
Human Rights Watch, Médecins Sans Frontières, and WHO have issued joint warnings that Afghanistan’s health system—particularly for women and children—is nearing collapse.
An MSF country coordinator stated in a recent report:
“When there are no female staff, women do not come to clinics. When they don’t come, they die giving birth at home. This is not just a staffing issue—it’s a human rights emergency.”
Health experts and local residents alike now fear that without immediate intervention—specifically, the reopening of education pathways for women—the remaining female workforce will soon retire or leave, and entire provinces will lose access to maternal and child healthcare.
