Action for Development

🎉 We’re pleased to share some exciting news!
💙 Action for Development has been selected for the 2026 Safer World Fund Matching Campaign on GlobalGiving!
Through this campaign, your support will help advance our Access to Primary Healthcare project in Afghanistan 🇦🇫, helping women and families access essential healthcare when they need it most.
Our project provides:
🤰 Free healthcare for women during pregnancy and childbirth
💊 Support with essential medicine costs for women-headed households
🏥 Greater access to vital primary healthcare services
✨ And your generosity can go twice as far!
Donations will be matched 100%, up to $1,000 per donor, until December 31, 2026, or until matching funds run out.
Every contribution can help us reach more women and families with essential healthcare. 🤝
👉 Donate today and multiply your impact:
https://bit.ly/3UM3POk
🙏 Thank you for standing with us and supporting women’s health, dignity, and wellbeing in Afghanistan.

This week, the world marked , honoring people who keep showing up in the hardest circumstances.

In , Action for Development is focused on protecting a hard-won national achievement: a midwifery workforce built from just 467 midwives in 2001 (which meant that only 1 midwife was available to cater to 50,000 people) to nearly 35,000 trained graduates by 2021.

However, only 5000 of them are employed (meaning 6 midwives are available to cater to 50,000 people).

Since late 2024, women have been barred from midwifery and nursing training; cutting off the pipeline of future health workers in a country where maternal care depends almost entirely on female providers.

With support from ONE DAY’S WAGES , Action for Development is investing in the already serving their communities; strengthening clinical skills in antenatal care, safe delivery, and complication management.

We've also seen this investment in people translate directly into outcomes: community health workers we've trained have gone on to complete university degrees and return to serve their own communities as qualified doctors and dentists, including through a new dental unit established at one of our supported facilities.

This is humanitarian work in practice: not only responding to crisis, but preserving the people and skills that make recovery possible.

To learn more/support our mission, click here
https://actfordev.org/
https://onedayswages.org/

🚨 New Event Alert!

This September, Action for Development is proud to partner in two special events in Geneva celebrating Afghan art, music, cultural expression, and resilience.

🔗 Link: https://www.geneve-communes.ch/agenda/blooming-afghanistan-art-resists-hope-blooms-arash-barez-and-aseman-ensemble-live-victoria

🖼️ EVENT 1 — BLOOMING AFGHANISTAN EXHIBITION
📅 7–9 September 2026
📍 Palais des Nations, Geneva – Building A, Salle des Pas Perdus

The exhibition will feature a wide range of artworks from Afghanistan including works created by our students there, giving them an opportunity to share their creativity and perspectives with an international audience in Geneva.
The programme will also include daily interactive painting sessions from 13:00 to 15:00.
One of the artists performing at the Victoria Hall concert will also participate in the exhibition, creating a special connection between the two events through both visual art and music.

🎶 EVENT 2 — CULTURAL RIGHTS DISCUSSION & CONCERT
📅 8 September 2026
📍 Victoria Hall, Geneva

The evening will bring together artists, diplomats, human rights defenders and the public for a discussion on cultural rights in Afghanistan, followed by Afghan refreshments and a concert by Arash Barez and Ensemble Aseman.

🕡 18:30–19:30 — Public discussion on cultural rights in Afghanistan
🥟 19:30–20:00 — Afghan refreshments
🎵 20:30–22:00 — Arash Barez & Ensemble Aseman in concert

Admission is free – registration is required.

We are delighted to support both events and to help bring the creativity of our students in Afghanistan to Geneva.

It was an inspiring and important conversation. We are deeply grateful to our speakers and everyone who joined us to listen, learn, and stand in solidarity with women and girls in Afghanistan. The conversation may be over, but the work—and our commitment—continues.



For nearly five years, women and girls in Afghanistan have faced one of the most severe rollbacks of rights in modern history. Restrictions have reached nearly every aspect of daily life, from education and employment to healthcare, freedom of movement, and public participation.

Yet Afghan women continue to lead, care for their communities, and fight for a more just future.

Join for a conversation with the leaders working alongside them every day:

🎙️ Zahra Nader, Executive Director and Editor-in-Chief, (Moderator)
🎙️ Zuhra Dadgar-Shafiq, , implementing partner of
🎙️ Sana Mahmud,
🎙️ Nancy Newman, (IANGEL)
🎙️ Dr. Susan Antolin,

Together, they'll discuss how organizations are adapting to expand maternal healthcare, strengthen mental health, advance women's rights, and provide life-saving support to women and girls despite extraordinary challenges.

Join us on Wednesday, August 12 at 12 pm ET / 9 am PT for this important conversation.

Register today: https://donate.togetherwomenrise.org/2026-august-afghan-webinar-registration-page

📢 Upcoming event alert!

🗓️ Mark your calendar: Together Women Rise is hosting a timely webinar on the status of women and girls in Afghanistan 🇦🇫 — join to hear expert panelists 🎙️ on what's happening and what comes next.

📅 Wed, Aug 12 | 🕕 6 PM Geneva time (12 PM EDT)

🆓 Free & open to all

🔗 Register: https://donate.togetherwomenrise.org/2026-august-afghan-webinar-registration-page

🇨🇭 Happy Swiss National Day!
On this , we celebrate the values of , , and that inspire our work every day.

From Geneva to Afghanistan, these values are reflected in every child who gains access to , every family receiving , and every building a stronger future. Together with our partners and communities, we remain committed to creating opportunities where they are needed most.



🇨🇭 Bonne Fête nationale suisse !
En cette , nous célébrons les valeurs de , de et de qui inspirent notre action au quotidien.

De Genève à l’Afghanistan, ces valeurs prennent vie à travers chaque enfant qui accède à l’ , chaque famille qui bénéficie de soins de et chaque qui construit un avenir plus solide. Aux côtés de nos partenaires et des communautés, nous restons engagés à créer des opportunités là où elles sont les plus nécessaires.

Every year on 30 July, the world observes the World Day Against Trafficking in Persons to raise awareness about one of the gravest violations of

Human trafficking affects millions of people worldwide through forced , sexual exploitation, forced marriage, domestic servitude, and other forms of . are often deceived with false promises of employment or a better future, only to be exploited by networks.

The United Nations highlights that trafficking increasingly intersects with and online operations, making international is more important than ever.

✅ On this day, let us stand in solidarity with survivors, support efforts to end , and help create communities where every person can live in freedom, dignity, and safety. Together, we can help end .



Chaque année, le 30 juillet, le monde célèbre la Journée mondiale de la lutte contre la traite des personnes afin de sensibiliser à l'une des plus graves violations des .

La traite des êtres humains touche des millions de personnes dans le monde à travers le , l'exploitation sexuelle, les mariages forcés, la servitude domestique et d'autres formes d' . Les sont souvent trompées par de fausses promesses d'emploi ou d'un avenir meilleur, avant d'être exploitées par des .

Les Nations Unies soulignent que la traite des êtres humains est de plus en plus liée à la et aux , ce qui rend la plus essentielle que jamais.

✅ En cette journée, exprimons notre solidarité envers les survivants, soutenons les actions visant à mettre fin à l'exploitation et contribuons à bâtir des communautés où chacun peut vivre en liberté, en dignité et en sécurité. Ensemble, nous pouvons mettre fin à la .

🎁 Exclusive Registration Benefits for Participants Referred by Action for Development 🎁

Are you planning to join the Youth Career Accelerator in Health 2026 in Geneva? Your opportunity to connect, learn, and build your global health career starts here. Empower School of Health

📅 17–21 August 2026 | Geneva, Switzerland
👉 Register now and use your Action for Development coupon code: AFDN9TF to unlock your exclusive benefits: https://www.empowerschoolofhealth.org/youth/youth-career.php?fbclid=IwY2xjawTLLiNleHRuA2FlbQIxMABzcnRjBmFwcF9pZBAyMjIwMzkxNzg4MjAwODkyAAEeuF5-SUuXaNGaXoIaAzsUYXLbO0YUmrwj-9LHmOLUdJgbHTHFtQN4KeztpTI_aem_I4sHMo4--58V6xbZX4lG2g

📌 Action for Development Coupon Code: AFDN9TF (Please enter this code during registration to receive your discount and ensure your registration is counted under the Action for Development referral program.)

Participants registering through Action for Development can enjoy exclusive benefits:
✨ 20% discount on the registration fee Use the Action for Development coupon code AFDN9TF during registration and receive 20% off the standard registration fee (CHF 950 → CHF 760).

✨ Help support more young professionals Every registered and paid participant using the Action for Development coupon code contributes to Action for Development’s referral benefits.

✨ 100% scholarship opportunity For every 5 successful registrations using the Action for Development coupon code, the 5th participant will receive a full scholarship (100%).

During the program, you will gain:
🌍 Inside access to WHO, UNITAR, and Geneva’s leading global health institutions
🎯 A specialized career track aligned with your goals
🏛️ Real institutional exposure through site visits
🧠 Guidance from global health experts and mentors
📋 A personalized career action plan
📈 8 weeks of post-workshop coaching, support, and alumni community access
Organized by Empower School of Health in partnership with UNITAR.