The Trump Administration’s USAID cuts have affected many in Afghanistan, severely fracturing their already vulnerable health system. The U.S. previously provided more than 40% of foreign aid to Afghanistan, one of the poorest nations in the world, with a population of roughly 40 million. The World Health Organization (WHO) claims that more than 200 clinics have been closed, deprioritizing women’s health in Afghanistan.

Clinics Closing

Midwives in Afghanistan claim that mother and infant deaths have increased since the health clinics in many remote villages have been permanently closed. Women have not been able to reach the leading hospitals in time to receive proper care from a midwife. Many European nations have also revoked their foreign aid, leaving Afghanistan in a grueling position. The WHO believes 200 more facilities will be permanently closed by June 2025, NPR reports. These foreign aid cuts affect the most vulnerable patients in this developing nation: women, children and low-income populations. There is no direct data on complications and deaths due to the 206 clinics that closed as of March 2025. Midwives from village to village are spreading awareness to each other about pregnancy and childbirth deaths. USAID cuts are deeply deprioritizing women’s health in Afghanistan.

Midwives Testimony

In the western provinces of Herat, a midwife, Faezeh, experienced her clinic closing due to aid cuts. Previously, the clinic had been active at all hours. Many health clinics in Afghanistan not only assist with maternal and newborn care but also provide for the most vulnerable patients, including malnourished children and the elderly, NPR reports. The clinics offer vaccination and nutrition. The clinic in Herat was not reopened despite the older generation’s efforts to negotiate with the public health officer. There is no donor funding available to establish a reopening. Faezeh believes that if the clinic had not closed, the women who recently experienced maternal and infant death would have been able to make it, according to NPR. Clinics that remain open are distantly spaced out, making it virtually inaccessible for Afghans to receive care.

Karima, a maternal care doctor at a regional hospital in Afghanistan, believes that maternal and infant death rates are increasing due to the cuts in prenatal and postpartum services, previously provided by foreign NGOs. The NGO cuts only further deprioritizes women’s health in Afghanistan. A woman in a rural area of Herat lost her baby due to a condition known as meconium aspiration syndrome. A condition in which the baby has been in the womb for too long. This condition only occurs in 5% to 10% of births, NPR reports. It is treatable, but not having professional care in her community prevented this mother from having a life with her child. Women already have strict travel regulations imposed on them by the Taliban. The closing of the clinics is imposing a higher risk on women who do seek to travel to a further village to receive maternal care.

Women for Afghan Women

Foreign aid cuts have affected many nations in the developing world. Women for Afghan Women is partnering with organizations in Afghanistan to expand its help. Like many organizations trying to establish aid and funding for Afghanistan, they have been limited in their pursuits due to government control of the nation. Afghan midwives are the hope for maternal care. Private funding is being sought, but grassroots support is limited. International financing is persistently in conversation in U.S. government relations settings. Support from congressional leaders for the International Affairs budget could bring resolution for the deprioritization of women’s health in Afghanistan and developing nations across the world.

– Mackenzie Inman

Mackenzie is based in Washington DC, US and focuses on Global Health for The Borgen Project.

Photo: Flickr