The United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) started its operation in Afghanistan in 1976. When political upheavals in the late 1970s prompted large numbers of Afghans to flee the country and take refuge in neighboring Iran and Pakistan, UNFPA extended the scope of its interventions to reach refugees in both Iran and Pakistan. In 2002 UNFPA first established its country office in Kabul.
UNFPA Third Country Programme (2010 - 2013) is based on national priorities as reflected in the Afghanistan National Development Strategy (ANDS), which is aligned with the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), and contributes to the achievement of all three United Nations Development Assistance Framework priority areas (a) governance, peace and stability; (b) sustainable livelihoods; (c) basic social services.
The programme currently in progress invests in three broad areas - Reproductive Health and Rights, Gender Equality, and Population and Development, touching on the cross-cutting themes -- humanitarian assistance and youth and development, and is focused mainly in four provinces -- Bamiyan, Daikundi, Badakhshan, Faryab.
