22-year-old Sharifa is one of the thousands of Afghan mothers struggling to overcome the hurdles that are posed by a healthcare system weakened by decades of war, poor facilities, and social and cultural barriers that are difficult to break.

Afghanistan: Attack in Kabul
On Saturday, Kabul was the target of another horrific attack.
Our Surgical Centre received 131 wounded patients and Dejan Panic, Programme Coordinator, described the situation as a “massacre”. He was interviewed by the BBC World Service and describes the extraordinary efforts of the team at the Surgical Centre to provide lifesaving medical care in the most challenging of circumstances. Click here to listen to the programme (UK only).