SIGAR: Afghanistan is facing a shortage of healthcare professionals

The US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction (SIGAR) says Afghanistan already has a shortage of trained health care professionals, but that shortage is now growing.

The US Special Inspector General for Afghanistan Reconstruction wrote in a tweet that in 2018, Afghanistan had an average of 4 doctors, nurses and midwives per 10,000 people, which is much lower than the WHO standard wich is 23 doctors are considered for 10 thousand people.

The agency added that the number of health workers is probably much lower now due to the collapse of the previous government, the non-payment of salaries to health workers and the reluctance of many of them due to uncertainty about the security situation.

Earlier, the World Health Organization warned of the possibility of a health system collapse in Afghanistan, saying that most health centers in Afghanistan were short of equipment and specialized personnel.