Kabul, May 14 (UNI) UNICEF has begun distribution of vitamins to 50,000 pregnant and lactating women in Kabul to improve maternal health and help them fight anaemia.

The programme was announced Tuesday (yesterday) and was implemented with financial aid from the European Union, reports Khaama News. The UNICEF initiative is currently ongoing in Afghanistan’s capital city.

The international body shared the news on its X (formerly Twitter) account, highlighting the significance of the programme in tackling health challenges faced by women during pregnancy and breastfeeding.

As Afghanistan continues facing chronic malnutrition, UNICEF is working to curb iron deficiency and anaemia among pregnant and breastfeeding women in the country via targeted vitamin and mineral supplementation.

In 2024, the agency distributed folic acid (iron) tablets to an estimated 2.5 million adolescent girls—part of a broader effort to combat anaemia, a condition that remains widespread and especially dangerous during pregnancy. Left untreated, it can lead to complications for both mothers and newborns.

With Afghanistan’s healthcare system weakened severely by years of conflict, political instability, and underinvestment, access to adequate maternal nutrition remains a major public health challenge.

International aid groups, including UNICEF, continue to play a critical role in delivering life-saving interventions, focusing on the health and well-being of women and children most at risk.

The humanitarian situation in Afghanistan continues to remain dire, with lack of medicines, infrastructure, and food security posing a major challenge. While the situation in some areas such as economy and food has improved a bit over the years, it is insufficient to tackle the problems facing the country.

This has been further exacerbated by little international aid, and the continued freezing of the country’s bank assets by the US, following the Taliban takeover in 2021.

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