Young Afghan girl, Naderah, shares why Afghanistan cannot afford to remain unprepared for the next earthquake.
Recent earthquakes in Afghanistan are a stark reminder that our country remains dangerously vulnerable to seismic activity — and that we are not doing enough to prepare, protect, and save lives. The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) recently warned that Kabul faces the highest seismic risk among Afghan cities due to its proximity to the Chaman Fault. Over the past decade, more than 600,000 Afghans have been affected by earthquakes, with an average of 188 deaths each year.
Why Are We Still Unprepared?
Despite heroic efforts by local responders and aid agencies, these disasters have exposed serious gaps in Afghanistan’s earthquake preparedness:
- No enforced earthquake-resistant building code.
- Low public awareness of safety measures.
- Rural homes still built with unreinforced mud and stone.
- Limited emergency equipment and trained personnel.
- Restrictions on female aid workers, slowing relief efforts.
- Our disaster response has been reactive, not preventative — and that costs lives.
A History of Painful Lessons
On June 20, 2025, a mild 4.5-magnitude earthquake shook Qara Bagh district in Herat Province. No casualties or major damage were reported, but authorities warned residents to stay alert for aftershocks. For many Afghans, the tremor brought back memories of the October 2023 earthquakes in Herat, which killed 2,445 people and injured 9,420. In 2022, a 6.3-magnitude quake struck Paktika and Khost, killing more than 1,000 and injuring 1,500. In the October 2023 disaster, over 90% of the victims were women and children, trapped inside fragile mud-brick homes. Entire villages were flattened. Survivors described sleeping outside in the cold, terrified of aftershocks, while loved ones remained buried under rubble.
A Call to Action
Earthquakes are not rare in Afghanistan. Every time they strike, the same pattern repeats: tragedy, shortterm relief, and then forgetting — until the next disaster. We cannot afford this cycle any longer.
The Afghan government, alongside international partners, must:
- Enforce earthquake-resistant building codes nationwide
- Train and equip local emergency response teams
- Launch public safety education campaigns, starting in schools
- Secure long-term funding for disaster preparednes
Being prepared is not a luxury, it is a necessity. If Afghanistan does not take urgent steps toward disaster readiness, the next earthquake will once again take lives that could have been saved. The time to act is now — not after the next tragedy.
Naderah H is currently studying journalism with LEARN Afghan through a collaboration with British journalist Sarah Hussain. She has a strong interest in science and technology, and enjoys reading, writing, and learning new things in her free time. Naderah dreams of becoming an engineer and using her knowledge to help better her country and support girls’ education.
Afghan Girls’ Voices is a collaborative effort between Observer Diplomat Magazine and LEARN Afghan to uphold Afghan girls’ fundamental right to education in the wake of the Taliban ban on secondary and higher education. Through this initiative, members of the LEARN Journalism Club contribute directly to the magazine. For safety and security reasons, only the first names of student contributors are published, and sensitive details that could endanger them, their families, or LEARN staff are withheld.
For more on LEARN visit: https://learnafghan.org
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