In the rugged beauty of Ghor province, western Afghanistan, lies a story of hope and transformation. For 24-year-old Gul Chehra, who lives in a remote village in Shahrak district, motherhood once meant fear and uncertainty. The isolation of her village, tucked amid snow-capped mountains and accessible only by a three-hour drive through rough terrain and the Harirod river, had long kept essential health services out of reach.
Three years ago, like many women in her community, Gul gave birth to her first child at home, with no medical assistance. “I was terrified,” Gul recalls. “There was no female doctor or midwife, no medicine, no support. The pain and stress were overwhelming.”
But with the opening of the WHO-supported Oshan sub-health centre, funded by European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO), the reality of childbirth in Gul’s village is beginning to change.
When Gul became pregnant with her second child, her memories of her first delivery filled her with anxiety. “I didn’t want to go through the same ordeal again,” she says. “When I heard about the sub-health centre, I shared my concerns with my mother-in-law, and she agreed to take me there.”