Afghanistan speaks: The impact of humanitarian research

August 2026 marked five years of Taliban rule in Afghanistan. In these five years, the country has seen an ever-worsening humanitarian crisis, particularly for women and girls.

Poverty, restrictive social norms, lack of jobs, mass returnees, strained basic services, intensifying climate shocks, and shrinking pool of aid funding undermine nutrition, livelihoods, and food security. With 28 million people in Afghanistan living in poverty in 2025 and over 80% households now in debt, life in Afghanistan is becoming increasingly precarious.

Girls are banned from secondary and higher education; laws implicitly sanction child marriage; women have been increasingly erased from the public eye – restricted from travelling without male chaperones and banned from a variety of public spaces including parks and gyms, and from multiple professions including midwife and nursing.

In this context, humanitarian work is more important than ever. And to reach people effectively, agencies need to understand what people need and how that need is constantly evolving.

In-depth audience research is at the heart of this. But at the same time, the ground reality makes it increasingly challenging to conduct research.

Researchers must navigate conflict, political sensitivities, insecurity, weak infrastructure, displacement, and rapidly changing realities. Logistical challenges can further complicate the process: limited telecommunications, poor roads, or the need for security clearances.

And first and foremost, researchers need to build trust – long before a survey can be launched or interviews conducted.

The hidden work – and how we do it

How do we reach people living in conflict and complex environments effectively? Successful research in complex humanitarian settings requires creativity, flexibility, and deep-rooted understanding. Fixed methodologies, standard timelines, and expectations developed for more stable environments may not work in complex settings. This means adapting approaches rather than rigidly applying them to ensure rigorous, quality research.

Local relationships and expertise are the backbone of successful research. Community leaders, local organisations and researchers, freelancers, translators, and coordinators understand the context, language, security, and social dynamics, which helps make research both possible and safer. It is the local teams who identify risks early and advise on appropriate approaches when conditions change. This requires constant judgment, care and flexibility, determining whether the respondent and the researchers are safe, shifting the types of topics that are discussed and choosing safe places for research to be conducted.

Why we listen – the impact

In Afghanistan, this careful approach has delivered unique and rare insights into how some of the most marginalised people in the country are experiencing humanitarian crisis.

What Matters? Afghanistan Speaks! is a quarterly bulletin sharing research-based insights that allow aid agencies to adapt quickly as needs change. this bulletin is proof of what becomes possible through trust and long-term relationship building.

Over 18 months, we have spoken to vulnerable communities across seven provinces, examining areas of need including maternal, newborn and child health; water, sanitation, and hygiene; disability; mental health; education; and early marriage. What we found is a story of compounding exclusions and struggle that goes beyond the absence of resources, and highlights the barriers that result from a lack of understanding of how people experience issues in their everyday lives.

"As individuals living with disability in this society, we have no value.” 

Deep-seated societal prejudices exclude people with disabilities from fully participating in society and keep them out of decisions that affect them. This shows up in the basics like water, sanitation, food and healthcare.

“No one and no organisation have ever consulted with us. We have no access to our rightful entitlements. Decisions are made by village representatives or offices, but we are never informed.” - Man with difficulty in seeing, Badakhshan province

Women and girls with a disability faced greater challenges than men. Layered on top of widespread taboos around menstruation are significant barriers in accessing menstrual hygiene products, services, and information - from markets they can’t reach, and products they can’t afford.

Pregnancy and nutrition needs go unmet for the same structural reasons. Economic challenges, distance to bazaars and clinics, lack of transport, and limited awareness of available services mean women with disabilities often go without adequate food or antenatal care.

"One time, when I went to receive services, I had to walk. By the time I reached the clinic, got the supplies, and returned, I had heavy bleeding, and my baby was almost lost.” — A new mother living with difficulties in walking and seeing, Ghor province

"If someone finds out that I am going to the counsellor’s room, they will label me as crazy.”

Perinatal mental health changes – depression, anxiety, distressing thoughts, sometimes self-harm – are common among pregnant women and new mothers, yet in Afghanistan, they are almost never spoken about.

Dismissal starts at home. Family members use offensive terms for women with mental health issues like “mad”, “jinn possessed”, “crafty”, “in love with another person”.

Mothers-in-law frequently read distress as spoiled behaviour or excuse-making rather than illness: Our home needs a second wife for my son because of your conflict and disruptive behaviour,” says a person who was interviewed for this research.

Without family members recognising a genuine health issue, women are left to manage alone, often until symptoms become severe.

When families do act, the response can do more harm than good. Religious leaders, seers, and shrines are the first stop for many, seen as accessible and locally trusted. The traditional response can escalate to hitting a woman with a stick or pipe to “remove” a spirit, black magic, an evil eye – deepening distress rather than treating it.

Our research throws light on how vulnerable people are left out of the room where decisions get made. These insights raise these voices and produce actionable recommendations to bridge gaps between services and the people who need them most.

They also show what’s needed: clinics that make women aware that support services exist, family members who acknowledge distress, and enough female counsellors on staff that privacy stops being a reason to stay away. Where access exists, the outcome can be transformative. One literate woman who happened to see a “psychological counsellor” sign on a clinic wall described the encounter as being reborn.

"I learned a lot in my life, and because of her (the counsellor), I am who I am today. I am happy, I am myself, and I am stable in my home.” — New mother, Faryab

Deeply human work

Humanitarian settings like Afghanistan are marked by growing complexity and diverse actors involved in crisis response. This requires coordination and a shared understanding of needs and priorities, which can only be achieved through well thought out, locally designed research.

Conducting such research is deeply human work: behind every dataset are countless conversations, negotiations, adjustments, risk assessments, and acts of collaboration. To meet the humanitarian challenges of our time, researchers must openly share what works, what does not, and how they navigate complex challenges in their own settings.

While what works in Afghanistan may not be the right solution for other humanitarian crises, the exchange of ideas across contexts is invaluable. It reassures those working on the ground that the obstacles are common, and offers practical starting points and inspiration for new approaches – generating knowledge that can translate into meaningful action to improve the lives of those who most need it.

This article first appeared on our LinkedIn newsletter, Insight and Impact. Subscribe on LinkedIn.