"Communities, countries and ultimately the world are only as strong as the well-being of women," said Fariba,* a dedicated maternal reproductive health professional in a UN entity in Afghanistan.

Fariba’s health-care career began in 1996 after she graduated from Kabul Medical University and began working as a Gynaecologist in a Government hospital's maternity ward. Her expertise and willingness to help others made her a role model for many women in her field. 

"Very few women could speak English and several of them sought my assistance in completing their theses," she recalled.

In addition to her work at the State hospital, Fariba supported an international non-governmental organization that focused on child malnutrition. But she discovered a heartbreaking reality: "Most of the malnourished children were girls, as families did not pay as much attention to them as they did to boys. Even mothers with twins would breastfeed their boy first, then feed their daughter if they had enough milk," she explained.

Fariba’s commitment to improving women’s health led her to join another organization focused on community midwifery education. She was among the few women who implemented an 18-month programme in an Afghan province. But as Fariba explains, the project had its share of challenges: "We were unable to find women who had completed sixth grade, which was a requirement for certification. This was right after the first de facto regime, when women did not have access to education."