In other areas, deepening economic hardship has seen a growing number of farmers resort to poppy cultivation. Transportation and communication facilities are derelict. For Afghans, there are very few job opportunities outside the subsistence economy on the one hand and the criminalized economy on the other. Health and Nutrition Afghans suffer one of the worst health situations in the world. All key indicators, including those for infant and maternal mortality, life expectancy and vaccination coverage, show that Afghanistan is in the bottom three countries of the world.
Health services are minimal and are highly dependent on aid agency inputs.
One in four children die before the age of 5 and a staggering 85,000 die annually from diarrohea, an easily preventable disease. Mothers in Afghanistan have the second highest mortality rate in the world with an estimated 16,000 maternal deaths annually. WHO reports that some 300,000 Afghans are infected annually with malaria, but estimates that the actual numbers may be as high as 3 million. Prior to sanctions, Ariana operated daily cargo flights serving Dubai and Amritsar, with a capacity of approximately 400 MT each way monthly. The cargo from Afghanistan usually included fresh fruits while return cargo consisted of electronic goods, medicine and medical equipment.