In Herat province, Afghanistan, communities were already preparing for a harsh winter when back-to-back earthquakes devastated the area. The quakes —each around 6.3 magnitude— hit on October 7, 10 and 15, and were each followed by several aftershocks. The series of quakes leveled villages, buried families and left entire communities homeless. According to OCHA, nearly …
Accessing clean water remains an everyday challenge in Afghanistan, especially in rural areas where most people depend on such distant water sources as springs and rivers for their daily needs. Despite the country’s abundant sources of fresh water, little attention has been paid to improving water quality and accessibility for the population—exposing them to health …
Every year, an estimated 300,000 women and 3 million newborns die from complications during pregnancy, childbirth or other neonatal causes. More than 90% of these deaths occur in low- and middle-income countries, and most could be prevented with the simple, low-cost care of a skilled midwife—a profession that is tragically under-represented across the world. Midwives …
At 1:30 a.m. on Wednesday, June 22, a 5.9-magnitude earthquake hit the Paktika and Khost provinces of Afghanistan, causing huge damage, killing at least 1,000 people, injuring more than 1,500 and causing widespread damage to infrastructure and homes. Gayan district in Paktika province—where International Medical Corps has been working for years—was the worst-affected. International Medical …