On September 15, 2022, management4health hosted at its Headquarters in Frankfurt a high-level delegation of the Afghan NGO HEALTHO together with Dr. Joost Butenop and Mr Dayani. Dr. Butenop is a medical doctor and has years of experience in development sector, particularly in Afghanistan. Mr. Dayni is an Afghan-German author and activist, who has been working for Afghanistan since years. The meeting was initiated by m4h to analyse opportunities and challenges in development sector in post-republic Afghanistan.
More than a year after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan, there has been an unprecedented economic collapse that has plunged millions of Afghans into extreme poverty. Since the collapse of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, Western countries have cut off or restricted their humanitarian aids to the country, while the Taliban continue to reject their calls to respect human rights, including the rights of Afghan girls and women.
One of the many sectors extremely affected by these cuts and restrictions is the health sector, which used to be more than 90% dependent on aids from international financing organisations. At this meeting, m4h together with HEALTHO discussed future opportunities and possibilities for cooperation not only in the health sector but also in other development sectors.
Following the earthquake in south-eastern Afghanistan and the floods in some parts of the country, the absence of international financing organisations is felt more than ever. The main outcome of this meeting, besides the preparation and better coordination for future collaboration on potential opportunities and challenges in Afghanistan, is a message to the international financing agencies.
We are encouraging and advising international development agencies, especially German organisations like BMZ, GIZ, KfW Development Bank and the German Foreign Ministry, to resume their activities in Afghanistan, not only because of the critical situation of the Afghan people, but also because their established organisations in the country will fall apart. The longer you wait and the longer the gap becomes, more of these organisations will fall apart.
