What is life like here? It's one thing for me to describe it -- it's another to hear about it straight from the official record. I've been reading over the official Afghani government plans for development. This below is just a little excerpt from the development plan:
The health status of the approximately 24 million Afghans, particularly women and children remains among the worst in the world. The country is decades behind its South Asian neighbors on key health indicators such as life expectancy; infant-, under-5 and maternal mortality; and total fertility rates. Afghan children suffer from widespread chronic malnutrition, with over half of Afghan children 6-59 months of age having stunted growth. This is accompanied by widespread micronutrient deficiency; 51% of children 7-11 year old suffer from moderate or severe iodine deficiency. Despite these problems, Afghanistan has the highest total fertility rate in Asia with the average woman expected to have 6.8 children during her reproductive life. This is more than twice as high as the average of South Asia. Most of the burden of disease results from infectious causes, particularly among children where diarrhea, acute respiratory infections, and vaccine preventable illnesses account for nearly 60% of deaths. The high rates of infectious disease reflect poor personal hygiene, limited access to clean water, inappropriate sanitation, and low level of parental education, indicating the need for a broad based assault on poor health.
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