More than 200 health facilities operated by the World Health Organization in Afghanistan have closed or ceased functioning, cutting off medical care for an estimated 1.84 million people, Medical Buyer, a health industry magazine, reported.
The closures follow significant U.S. aid cuts announced by President Donald Trump, who on his first day in office in January 2025 ordered an immediate freeze on all foreign assistance, including more than $40 billion in funding through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID). It was later confirmed that more than 80 percent of USAID programs had been canceled.
According to the report, WHO health centers have shut down in 28 of Afghanistan’s 34 provinces, contributing to what the organization described as an “escalating humanitarian crisis.” The country, already mired in poverty, is contending with outbreaks of diseases such as measles, malaria and polio.
Polio cases have been on the rise in recent months, driven in part by Taliban-imposed restrictions on vaccination campaigns.
Ajyal Sultany, head of communications for the WHO in Afghanistan, told Medical Buyer that “the closure of health facilities is compounding these crises, with displaced and marginalized communities facing heightened risks of disease, malnutrition, and inadequate medical care.”
The WHO said that in some of the hardest-hit regions—particularly in the north, west and northeast—more than one-third of clinics have already closed. An additional 220 health centers are expected to shut down by June unless new funding is secured.
In many rural districts, these clinics represented the only available health services, according to the report. The situation is worsened by Taliban policies that restrict women’s freedom of movement, including bans on traveling without a male guardian, limiting their access to care.
Other humanitarian organizations are also grappling with the effects of U.S. funding cuts. Save the Children said it had been forced to close 18 of its 32 clinics in Afghanistan due to budget shortfalls.
