Powering Safer Care at Urgun District Hospital with 100 kW Solar Energy

Safe healthcare begins with reliable systems, clean water, trained staff, and above all, reliable power. In Urgun District Hospital, located in Afghanistan’s remote Paktika province, the path to safer patient care is now powered by the sun, through the SESEHA Project.

October 28, 2025

Paktika, a province of Afghanistan located in the south east of the country has long suffered from a severe lack of critical infrastructure, including electricity access. The province suffered a great deal of damage to its infrastructure damage during the Soviet war of the 1980s. Since then, reconstruction there has been noticeably slower than in neighboring provinces such as Khost and Zabul. The province was also among those hit by the 2022 Afghanistan earthquake, which further strained its already fragile development.

Urgun District Hospital, located in Paktika, has long struggled with unreliable electricity, as it remains disconnected from the national power grid. This public health facility, serving a large population of more than 51,000 people, previously relied on two limited energy sources: a small-scale solar power system and a diesel generator. However, neither was sufficient to meet the hospital’s growing energy demands.

Photograph at a trade fair: vendor booth with jars, man talks to a woman in hijab, blue banners. — Photo Credit: UNDP Afghanistan

The inadequate power supply led to frequent blackouts that severely affected hospital operations. Critical departments, including the emergency ward, operating room, delivery room, laboratory, and vaccination unit, suffered from unpredictable power disruptions. Doctors and medical staff often found themselves in the middle of life-saving procedures when the power would suddenly cut off, risking patient safety and compromising the quality of care. With 39 staff serving more than 7,300 direct beneficiaries, the consequences of unreliable power were measured in lives.

To supplement the solar system, the hospital relied heavily on a diesel generator, which consumed around 2,000 liters of fuel each month. Not only was this financially burdensome, but it also contributed to noise pollution and harmful emissions.

Recognizing the urgent need for a sustainable and reliable energy solution, UNDP’s SESEHA Project installed a 100kW solar PV power system with battery energy storage at the hospital. This transformative upgrade now ensures electricity coverage for all hospital departments, from powering lighting in operating rooms to running diagnostic machines and vaccine refrigerators. The hospital now benefits from reliable, 24-hour electricity, providing uninterrupted, quality medical services.

The impact of solar powered electricity has been immediate and profound. Diesel consumption has dropped, saving the cost of thousands of litres of fuel annually and reducing emissions and noise pollution. Equally important, medical staff now work with confidence: lights stay on, diagnostic machines run uninterrupted, vaccine refrigerators maintain safe temperatures, and babies in incubators are no longer hostage to sudden power outages.

“Nobody worries about a blackout anymore – we haven’t had a single outage,” says Sharifa, a 30-year-old nurse in the delivery ward. During her shift, she gently checks on a seven-day-old baby boy weighing just 900 grams who requires constant monitoring. The child lies in a neonatal warmer powered by the new system. “Before, babies like this could be lost because the electricity would fail. Now, we can give them a real chance for survival,” she says.

In Afghanistan the infant mortality rate is nearly three times higher than the global average, at 50.4 deaths per 1,000 live births. As a result, neonatal services powered by solar energy at Urgun District Hospital play a critical role in saving newborn babies.

This achievement in Urgun goes far beyond a technical upgrade – it shows just how powerful clean energy can be in fragile settings, improving health services, reducing operating costs, creating a more comfortable environment for staff, and helping communities regain trust in their hospital.

Still, there is more to be done. The facility urgently requires modern medical equipment, upgraded spaces, and ongoing investment to match its new energy supply. As construction progresses and services grow, continued backing from UNDP and partners will be critical to help the hospital reach its full potential.

Urgun’s story carries an important message for other underserved areas: better healthcare often begins with power. Reliable, clean electricity isn’t merely a matter of keeping wards lit – it is about saving lives, dignifying care, and making development sustainable.

Between 2023 and 2027, the SESEHA Project aims to solarize a total of 1,347 facilities – 1,024 educational and 322 health facilities across Afghanistan. To date, 282 facilities have been supported (193 educational and 89 health). So far, the Project has benefitted 558,282 people across the country, including 341,559 females (61%) and 216,723 males (39%).   