Investigative Report | Kabul Times News

Afghan women’s silent crisis; growing concerns about mental health and suicide

Five years after the Taliban returned to power, Afghan women and girls face a set of social, economic and educational restrictions; conditions that, according to international organizations, have increased their psychological stress and social isolation.

Meanwhile, suicidal thoughts and attempts are serious concerns; although due to the lack of transparent national statistics, it is not possible to determine the exact number of suicides among Afghan women in recent years.

According to data from the World Health Organization, the suicide death rate among Afghan women in 2021 was estimated at about 2.4 cases per 100,000 women.

Also, in a 2023 UN survey, 8 percent of respondents said they knew at least one woman or girl who had attempted suicide. This figure does not mean that 8 percent of Afghan women have attempted suicide.

On the other hand, in the UN Women 2025 assessment, 75 percent of more than 2,000 women surveyed described their mental health as “bad” or “very bad.”

Deprivation of education, limited employment, domestic violence, forced marriage, poverty, and loss of future prospects are among the factors that can exacerbate the psychological stress on women and girls.

However, the lack of a transparent national system for recording suicide cases has hindered the provision of accurate and up-to-date statistics.

What is clear is the scale of the crisis in Afghanistan’s women’s mental health; a crisis that is not just a medical issue, but is directly linked to women’s rights, education, the economy, violence, and social freedoms.

Report: Shahpour Naibzada | Kabul Times News