Structural Social Determinants of Health Affecting Afghan Migrant Women’s Access to Reproductive Health Services: A Scoping Review

Background: Health is vital for migrants and host countries, supporting human rights and sustainabledevelopment. With rising migration of Afghan women, tackling barriers to reproductive healthservices is critical. This scoping review synthesizes evidence on structural social determinants ofhealth (SSDH) that affect Afghan migrant women’s access to reproductive health services.Methods: Using PRISMA guidelines and Arksey and O’Malley’s framework with the PCC model(Population: Afghan migrant women of reproductive age; Concept: structural social determinants ofhealth-influenced reproductive health access; Context: host countries), we searched Web of Science,Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar for studies from January 2000 to March 2025. Reference listswere screened. Eligible studies were empirical, quantitative, or mixed-methods, in English only.Results: From 1,170 records, 18 studies were included. SSDH which influences access fell intosix domains: Macroeconomic Policies, Social Policy, Social Class, Public Policy, Governance, andCulture & Social Norms. Key barriers included economic hardship, lack of insurance, undocumentedstatus, low health literacy, and cultural-linguistic challenges, limiting service access. The identifiedsexual and reproductive health outcomes were identified in various domains, including maternal andperinatal outcomes, reproductive health service utilization, and other reproductive health outcomes,including mental health and awareness.Conclusion: This review demonstrates that Afghan migrant women’s reproductive health access isshaped by intersecting structural determinants that collectively generate compounded health inequities.Improving this requires upstream structural reforms encompassing legal protection, health systemintegration, and cultural sensitivity, rather than service-oriented approaches alone. Policies that ignorethese SSDH will remain ineffective.