The non-governmental organization Action Against Hunger has announced the reopening of its mobile clinics in several provinces of Afghanistan after a temporary suspension of activities following the Taliban’s decision to ban women from NGO work as part of its restrictions on rights in the Central Asian country.
Action Against Hunger has stressed that it is «gradually» resuming work in the provinces of Badakhshan, Daikondi, Ghor and Helmand, «where access to health care is limited» and highlighted that during this time it has «kept two life-saving nutritional treatment centers in operation in Helmand province.»
The head of the NGO in Afghanistan, Samy Guessaby, has explained that this was made possible through a waiver from the Afghan Ministry of Health that allowed «all staff, men and women, to continue to run vital activities.» «We are now gradually resuming the operations of our mobile clinics in areas where health services are extremely limited,» he stressed.
Currently, two of Action Against Hunger’s mobile health teams are working with communities in Ghor and Helmand provinces, the NGO’s staff giving vital medical care to women and children, and ensuring improvements in health and nutrition for the entire community. «The organization’s mobile clinics in Daikondi and Badakhshan are scheduled to reopen as soon as possible,» he stressed in a statement.
Guessabi has emphasized that «for nearly 30 years, women have been an important pillar of our work to fight hunger in Afghanistan.» «Together with the humanitarian community in the country, we continue to advocate for the Taliban authorities to quickly end the measures to exclude women announced in December. This ban endangers the lives of millions of people in the country,» he added.
The mobile clinics are «a lifeline» given the shortage of health centers in rural areas of Afghanistan and allow humanitarian workers to provide essential health services to people in hard-to-reach areas. In severe cases of malnutrition, the mobile teams refer children and seriously ill women to hospitals.
The Taliban clarified that the ban on women working for NGOs operating in the country does not affect international or UN personnel, nor does it affect female health workers, in response to international complaints. The measure has led several NGOs to suspend their operations.
The United Nations has called on the Taliban to immediately lift the latest restrictions on the public life of Afghan women, including a ban on university education, and warned of the «terrible cascading effects» on their lives and the overall situation in the Central Asian country.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
