22-year-old Sharifa is one of the thousands of Afghan mothers struggling to overcome the hurdles that are posed by a healthcare system weakened by decades of war, poor facilities, and social and cultural barriers that are difficult to break.

Zarbibi and Maysaa are Two Brave Women.
People running through the hospital in serious conditions. Someone in shock. A wounded leg amputated in the operating theatre. Then contractions.
When Zarbibi turned up at our Surgical Centre for War Victims in Kabul, she was pregnant and injured. Fighting was still raging in the capital, just a couple of miles from our hospital, and the area was awash with blood. Despite being only six months pregnant, she gave birth to a little girl. And just look at them now, a few days later, mother and daughter wrapped up together in a blanket.
Zarbibi and Maysaa are two brave women. To them, and all the women who fight every day to improve the world, we dedicate this #InternationalWomenDay2020