Health, community projects aid rural Afghanistan

By Linda Bloom*

NEW YORK (UMNS)-Bringing stability to Afghanistan will require attention to the needs of its rural population, according to a United Methodist who recently visited the Asian country.

"Probably 80 percent of the population is in rural areas," said David Wildman, an executive with the United Methodist Board of Global Ministries. In a place where "daily living is quite hard," the people of Afghanistan struggle with extreme poverty, a low life expectancy and high maternal and infant mortality rates.

For the past 40 years, the Board of Global Ministries has partnered in Afghanistan on projects aimed at providing physical and mental health care, improving sources of energy, water and sanitation, and fostering community development and self-sufficiency. "In a small way, we've tried to model an ongoing commitment," he said.

The projects receive financial assistance through the Advance for Christ and His Church, the voluntary giving program of The United Methodist Church.

During a two-week visit to Afghanistan in May, Wildman said he heard "over and over again" that while the actions of the Taliban are a major concern, the country's main problems are the drug trade and political corruption.

The opium trade accounts for half the economy and opium addiction is a community issue. "Opium is a crop that is far more drought resistant," he added. "It does well with not much rainfall."

But as he traveled around Kabul and into a remote valley east of the capital city toward the Pakistan border, Wildman was impressed by the ability of the Afghan people to overcome hardships. "They are incredibly creative and resourceful in addressing their needs," he said.

Wildman also was struck by the "extraordinary hospitality" he experienced. "The generosity of the community is really quite genuine," he said.

A vision of health
Comprehensive eye care is one of the major programs that the Board of Global Ministries supports through partners in Afghanistan. In 2006, several eye hospital clinics treated more than 270,000 patients and performed more than 15,000 surgeries. In addition, pharmacies produced nearly half a million eye drops and hospitals distributed 22,200 pairs of glasses.

Preventative eye care remains a concern. An estimated one in 1,000 Afghans goes blind from cataracts each year. Among the consequences of Afghanistan's years of war and occupation are its high rates of maternal, infant and child deaths. Wildman visited the CURE International Hospital in Kabul, which is addressing these problems.

"Probably 85 percent of mothers give birth with no trained medical attendant present," he explained. "So if there's any kind of medical emergency, the rates of infant mortality and maternal mortality are incredibly high."

According to CURE, 44 Afghan women die every day giving birth because of a lack of access to services and to skilled delivery care. The infant mortality rate is 165 per 1,000 live births and child mortality before age 5 is 257 deaths per 1,000, compared with 7 per 1,000 and 8 per 1,000, respectively, in the United States.

CURE specialists and midwife trainers have created a curriculum for maternal and infant health training programs by spending hundreds of hours in 2005 developing and measuring competencies of staff midwives and general medicine doctors. Those training programs are being implemented across the country.

Besides the OB/GYN care, the hospital in Kabul provides general health services, orthopedic rehabilitation of children with disabilities, corrective plastic surgery for burn patients and treatment of cleft palates and lips. "The medical staff speaks in English, so they can bring in short-term (medical) volunteers," Wildman said.

Physical and economic needs
Wildman also visited a physiotherapy institute in Kabul, which offers a two-year training course and continuing education classes for physiotherapists and teachers, and an orthopedic workshop and physiotherapy center in the city of Maimana. That center is the only one serving people with disabilities between Mazar-e-Sharif and Herat.

In 2006, 14 physiotherapists graduated from the course in Kabul and 940 patients were treated there. Another 1,350 patients were treated in Maimana and many received technical appliances.

Providing electricity to rural communities is another way to meet basic physical and economic needs. Wildman said he was impressed by the system of micro-hydropower plants being established. These mini-plants use existing irrigation ditches and a turbine to harness water, providing electricity for 100 to 200 families. Teams of trained mechanics work with local communities to set up the system and install the turbines, which are built in a metal workshop in Kabul.

Other projects focus on mental health care, health and social education, micro-enterprise development and English language training for Afghan professionals and prospective university students.

For more information about projects in Afghanistan and how to contribute, contact Wildman at dwildman@gbgm-umc.org. Information also is available at http://new.gbgm-umc.org/about/advance/, the Advance Web site.

*Bloom is a United Methodist News Service news writer based in New York.