Training Midwives in Afghanistan

Since the start of the program of Midwives capacity building in Afghanistan, Action for Development has trained over 1300 midwives in over 10 provinces. Hanifa (pseudonym) who had graduated from a midwifery education from one of the local midwifery schools in 2018 and has received supplementary training in ten modules from Action for Development in 2022. She says to us “If I had not been near-by, that mother and the baby could have lost her lives. Saving lives on the spot gives me a great feeling. I was there with them since I knew they needed me.”

Hanifa, a 27-year-old midwife, had only been working at the one of the local health facilities in Kapisa Province for two years when the political shift happened and Taliban took power in 2021. “Even though majority left Afghanistan, I took the decision to stay and help women in need, as pregnancy and labout cannot wait until the situation would normalize”

As health centres across Afghanistan struggled with staffing shortages and changes in the policies, Hanifa made the final decision to continue serve the women in her village.

One of them was Fatima, a 22-year-old expectant mother from a nearby village. Nine months pregnant and feeling the early signs of labour, she had planned to deliver in a provincial hospital—but it had recently closed due to shortage of technical staff.

“We were scared,” said Fatima. “But my mother told me about Hanifa and the clinic, and we decided to go there.”

With her husband and uncle, Fatima made the journey—one and a half hours by motorbike over rough, unpaved roads. When she arrived at the health center, Hanifa was waiting, prepared and calm, since Fatima had called her before their departure.

Fatima’s labour was long and painful. By early afternoon, her blood pressure began to rise and her baby showed signs of distress. The family panicked, fearing the worst.

“There is no other option,” Hanifa said. “We couldn’t transfer her. The hospital in Mahmood Raqi had no staff. We had to manage the birth here, safely.”

Working tirelessly with limited equipment, Hanifa monitored Fatima’s condition and adjusted her care. Within the next few hours Fatima gave birth to a healthy baby girl.

“It felt like a miracle,” Fatima said. “I will never forget Hanifa’s voice telling me, ‘You’re strong, you can do this.’ She saved both of us.”

Hanifa’s story is one of many untold acts of quiet heroism across Afghanistan, where midwives continue to show up for their communities against all odds. On a day when many health workers fled, Hanifa stayed—because she knew that every heartbeat she protected meant a future saved.