Role of Household Economics in Health System Resilience: A Community-Based Case Study from Eastern Afghanistan

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Published Oct 31, 2025
https://doi.org/10.63476/atjss.v2i2.125
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Vol. 1 No. 1 (2025): Al-Taqwa Journal of Social Science

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Prof. Dr. Ghulam Rahim Awab
Department of Public Health (Global Communicable Diseases Control & Public Health Leadership), Afghan International Islamic University, Kabul-Afghanistan
Dr. Abdulillah Kamran
Department of Neuropsychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, Nangarhar University, Nangarhar - Afghanistan.
Dr. Rohullah Asady
Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medicine, Nangarhar University, Nangarhar -Afghanistan.
Hamidullah Tanay
Department of Information Systems, Faculty of Computer Science, Nangarhar University, Nangarhar -Afghanistan

Abstract

Good health is both a precondition and result of economic development along with appropriate environment are among the fundamental goals of sustainable development. Due to prolonged conflict, economic fragility, and international aid-dependency, Afghanistan’s health system faces mounting challenges. This study explores the role of the household economy particularly backyard-farming, home-poultry, animal rearing, dry-food and goods preparation practices as an essential component of public health resilience and strengthening. A mixed-methods case study conducted in 215 Households in Jalalabad city and 3 surrounding districts in Nangarhar province in early (Jan- Mar) 2025 and the findings indicate that over 65% of surveyed households engaged in household gardening, farming, animal rearing, small-scale food production, tailoring, handicrafts and other self-employed trades were contributing to nutrition improvement, clean water, vulnerable-groups empowerment, increased access and financing of essential health-services, psychosocial wellbeing, and improved environmental living conditions. The findings highlight the essential role that household economic practices play in supplementing health services, reducing disease burden and health care cost, particularly in underserved rural and women-led home enterprises. Furthermore, families with robust home-based economies demonstrated stronger cooperative support mechanism during humanitarian disasters and crises, enhancing traditional coping capacities. Despite these benefits, barriers such as limited market access, low-confidence, marginalization, urban-rural disparities, lack of microfinance options constrained the full potential of home-based economic-initiatives. Promoting income-generating and social-protection activities especially for women, integrating health to economic and household economic into health strategies, can enhance both the scope and sustainability of health-outcomes. The paper also proposes to leverage local knowledge, gender-inclusive, culture-sensitive household practices, health education and health literacy as pathways toward more resilient economic and health systems.

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

How to Cite
Awab, P. D. G. R., Kamran, D. A., Asady, D. R., & Tanay, H. (2025). Role of Household Economics in Health System Resilience: A Community-Based Case Study from Eastern Afghanistan. ATJSS, 1(1), 523–532. https://doi.org/10.63476/atjss.v2i2.125

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