This project focuses on a number of urgent public health problems in Afghanistan and contributes to addressing the underlying and immediate causes of maternal and child death. The objective is to improve the health of women, newborns, and children under five in select areas of Bamyan and Badakhshan provinces in Afghanistan. The project encompasses four main components: (1) enhancing access to maternal, newborn, and child health services by improving health facilities; (2) improving the quality of health services provided by strengthening the skills of health workers (midwives, nurses, managers) and by strengthening the educational programs at selected professional development institutions; (3) enhancing the participation of communities in decision-making processes within the health sector, including the management and distribution of health services, holding the government to account, and raising awareness of better health practices; and (4) improving the health and nutrition practices of women, men, and children under five in selected areas in Badakhshan. Project activities include infrastructure work, including the construction of the new Bamyan Provincial Hospital, and the provision of maternal, newborn and child health equipment to health facilities. The project also involves training new nurses, community health nurses, and midwives and strengthening national and provincial training institutes. On the nutrition front, the project includes stocking health facilities with nutritious food, training facility staff in the treatment of severe acute malnutrition, and supporting micronutrient suppliers. At the community level, the project provides training for men, women, and children under five in hygiene, nutrition, and sanitation, in addition to undertaking community awareness activities. It also supports the production of nutritious food and helps communities to implement water, sanitation, and hygiene projects. In addition, technical assistance is provided through the project to Afghan Ministry of Public Health personnel, on topics relating to maternal, newborn, and child health.
Results achieved as of the end of the project (June 2016) include: (1) improved quality of maternal, newborn and child health (MNCH) care through a range of interventions resulting in a 29% increase in antenatal care attendance; (2) 4,613 health workers were trained (including doctors, nurses, midwives, community health workers and health facility staff); (3) 11 health facilities received a total of 76,704 acute malnourished patients under five, of which 62,361 were out-patient cases and 14,343 were severe acute malnutrition cases; (4) increased satisfaction with MNCH services across a range of dimensions including the behaviour of health workers as well as the conditions of the health facility; (5) a new provincial hospital was constructed in Bamyan Province to deliver high quality health services aligned with the national Expanded Package of Hospital Services and with the mandate of acting as a provincial center for MNCH services; and (6) 243,142 people (125,702 women and 117,440 men) were reached through health, nutrition and hygiene promotional activities. As a result of this project, women, newborns, and children are better able to access and use quality health and nutrition services at the health facility and community levels.
