Assistance for Families and Indigent Afghans to Thrive (AFIAT)

Data, Health Information, and Measurement, Leadership, Management, and Governance, Pandemic Preparedness and Response

Assistance for Families and Indigent Afghans to Thrive (AFIAT)

Overview

Assistance for Families and Indigent Afghans to Thrive (AFIAT) strives to improve the quality of primary and secondary health and nutrition services in targeted rural areas; increase access to high-impact and evidence-based health and nutrition services; enhance adoption of optimal health and nutrition behaviors by communities and households; coordinate and standardize medical supply management across all stakeholders; optimize registration and import procedures for medical commodities; and collaborate with partners to plan, finance, and manage resilient health services. 

By applying proven methods and innovations, our approach will result in sustainable improvements in maternal and child health, family planning and reproductive health, TB, and nutrition, particularly for women and preschool children, youth, men, and rural Afghans. To sustain these outcomes, we will work with partners to increase public and private investments in health and increase transparency and accountability.

Related Focus Areas

Data, Health Information, and MeasurementLeadership, Management, and GovernancePandemic Preparedness and ResponsePharmaceutical and Supply Chain ManagementPrimary Health CareTuberculosisWomen’s, Children’s, and Adolescents’ Health
  1. News & Stories

Moving Toward a New Model of Care for Afghan Mothers: The Critical Role of Midwives in Providing High-Quality Antenatal Care

Upholding quality of care is essential for achieving universal health coverage (UHC). A strong, responsive, and sustainable primary health care system—foundational for UHC—must ensure that quality, affordable, and person-centered health services are available and accessible to all, particularly vulnerable groups like women, children, and rural populations. This is especially imperative in fragile or emergency settings like Afghanistan, where quality can sometimes fall to the wayside in the interest of providing rapid, life-saving assistance.

Read more
One Year On: Reflections from Afghanistan
Putting Patients at the Center to Strengthen Primary Health Care 
Management Sciences for Health to Strengthen Health Systems in Ten Countries
Norio Kasahara (1)
Norio Kasahara

Chief of Party

Project Contact

Dr. Norio Kasahara, MSH’s Chief of Party for the Assistance for Families and Indigent Afghans to Thrive (AFIAT) Project, has over 27 years of experience working in global health in Africa and Asia. Prior to joining MSH, he worked as a consultant for the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Malaysia, Fiji, Bangladesh, Zambia, Kenya, and South Africa and served as a technical officer to the Ministry of Health in Malawi, where he helped develop district health planning systems. In Afghanistan, he assisted the government in developing pharmaceutical systems while acting as Deputy Chief of Party, and later acting Chief of Party, for the USAID-funded Strengthening Pharmaceutical Systems project. In addition, he has served on various technical committees for the Afghan Ministry of Public Health, providing policy and strategic advice on health systems development. Dr. Kasahara is a registered pharmacist who holds a master’s degree in international health from the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health and a doctorate in pharmaceutical sciences from the University of Washington, Seattle.

Donors & Partners

Donors

United States Agency for International Development

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