With over three million children under the age of five experiencing acute malnutrition annually, Afghanistan has faced a persistent hunger crisis that has remained at catastrophic levels for the last three years. The International Rescue Committee (IRC) has been delivering malnutrition support since 2021, expanding services to address both Severe and Moderate Acute Malnutrition in ten provinces.
In Kunduz province, staff members from one of the IRC’s 23 basic health centers set up across Afghanistan, travel up to three hours per day to reach the center situated on the banks of the Amo river in the Imam Sahib district. To deliver lifesaving health services to remote communities, the team, consisting of male and female staff, must take a local boat that operates two or three times daily. Crossing the river takes one to one and a half hours at low water levels and longer at high water levels.
This is particularly challenging because of the extreme weather conditions - it is scorching in the summer and freezing in the winter. Additionally, the local boat service only crosses the river two or three times a day.
