On 10 March 2025, the head of the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), Roza Otunbayeva, presented a report to the UN Security Council, noting the continued severity of Afghanistan’s humanitarian crisis. In 2025, more than half of the population — around 23 million people — require humanitarian assistance. Yet that support is rapidly decreasing. “The defunding of assistance is already having and will continue to have a significant impact on the Afghan people. In the past month, more than 200 health facilities have closed,” she warned.
Among those most affected by shrinking resources are women and girls, who suffer disproportionately from the closure of health facilities and the lack of investments. Against this backdrop, the Special Trust Fund for Afghanistan (STFA) has played a critical role in sustaining and expanding essential services through community-driven, small-scale infrastructure investments. These interventions aim to both restore basic services and reduce the risks posed by climate change, an urgent need for a country ranked among the top ten globally most impacted and least prepared to cope with climate change impacts.
Building Resilience Through Community-led Solutions
Over the past five years, floods and flash floods have been the most devastating sudden-onset disasters in Afghanistan. In 2024 alone, flooding affected more than 173,300 people (23,000 families), accounting for 96 per cent of all-natural disasters and damaging critical infrastructure (OCHA HNRP 2025). One of the hardest-hit regions is Khost, which experiences heavy rainfall each year, leading to devastating floods during the monsoon season.
In Tani District’s Doormalaka Community, Khost Province, severe floods in 2022, destroyed homes, farmlands and livelihood. Responding to the community’s request, UN-Habitat, with funding from STFA and in close consultation with the residents, constructed a 245-meter flood-retaining wall. This critical infrastructure directly protects 150 households residing on the site and indirectly benefits 400 households downstream. It has also safeguarded, hundreds of jeribs of farmland, the primary source of income for the Doormalaka residents. Shawazgai, a local farmer had lost 4 jeribs (8000m2) of agricultural land to devastating floods in 2022. Reflecting on the impact of the flood retaining wall, he states, “Before, whenever I saw clouds during flood season, I lost my sleep and peace. But now, thanks to UN-Habitat and the flood retaining wall, I no longer worry, I can finally sleep in peace.”
Since the wall’s completion, no casualties have been reported during the 2023 and 2024 flood seasons in the protected areas, and agricultural activities have continued without disruption. Similar resilience-building projects have been implemented in other vulnerable locations across Khost and Gardiz, areas among the regions most affected by recurrent flooding in Afghanistan.
Putting Women’s Needs at the Center
In the rural South-Eastern Region, access to health services remains rare, yet critical, especially for Women. Many walk more than 6 km with their severely sick children to reach the nearest health center, where wait times are long, and infrastructure is often inadequate.
In Mihlan, a small village 15 km from Gardiz city and 18 km from the regional hospital, a Basic Health Center (BHC) provides essential care, particularly for women and children. The center’s team, led by Dr. Amina* (name changed for privacy) works tirelessly to offer treatment and psychological support despite challenging conditions.
Serving over 6,000 households, the Mihlan Clinic sees more than 150 patients per day. However, until recently, it lacked proper waiting area. Patients were forced to wait outside in freezing temperatures, harsh sunlight, or heavy rain.
This not only exposed them to additional health risks but also posed safety and privacy concerns, especially for women. In response to community requests, UN-Habitat constructed two gender-segregated waiting halls, each equipped with washrooms, lighting, fans, and seating benches. One hall is located adjacent to the gynecology ward for women, the other is designated for men to ensure respect for cultural and religious norms.
“One of the most urgent needs was a waiting area where women, could be safe and comfortable while awaiting treatment, respecting social norms, especially during harsh weather,” said Dr. Amina. Community elders emphasized in discussions with UN-Habitat’s project teams stating that, “thanks to this project of constructing waiting halls in this health facility, women are no longer exposed to severe weather. The well-lit waiting rooms also include sanitation facilities, providing relief for women who often had to spend hours sitting outside the small clinic due to long waits for doctor appointments”.
UN-Habitat’s over 30 years of experience in Afghanistan have been rooted in a community-focused approach, puts people in the center – women and men. Through STFA funding, this model has been successfully applied to build resilience, restore services, and protect lives. Where possible, communities contribute financially or in-kind to projects. But most importantly, they volunteer their time to help monitor and ensure high-quality execution. These interventions, often small in scale, make a tangible difference in the daily lives of Afghans and create a sense of ownership and sustainability that top-down aid efforts often lack.
As humanitarian funding continues to shrink, and Afghan people and communities face increasingly complex challenges—from climate change to economic hardship— supporting them through community-driven decision-making processes and basic human needs funding becomes even more critical.
About STFA:
The Special Trust Fund for Afghanistan (STFA) is an inter-agency mechanism that supports UN organisations to ‘Deliver as One’ in the provision of basic human needs support in Afghanistan within the Humanitarian, Development and Peace nexus. The STFA focuses on a community-centric, area-based approach, emphasizing essential services, livelihoods, and social cohesion aligned with UN Strategic Framework for Afghanistan ensuring the interventions are not only immediate but also durable and inclusive. STFA’s work is made possible by the generous contributions of donors including the governments of Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Iceland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Qatar, Sweden, Turkey and UNDP.
