In brief
Afghanistan opened a nation‑wide anti‑polio drive on Monday, covering 12.8 million children under five in four days and distributing albendazole tablets to curb worm infections. Health minister Mawlawi Noor Jalal Jalali urged parents to ensure their kids are vaccinated, citing national elimination goals.
In a government‑announced effort to eliminate polio, the Taliban‑led administration in Afghanistan opened a nation‑wide anti‑polio vaccination campaign across the country on Monday, targeting children under five years old. The operation, described by the state‑run media outlet Bakhtar News Agency, will last four days, covering all provinces and reaching an estimated 12.8 million children.
The campaign's launch was reported by Xinhua, which noted that the Ministry of Public Health will provide polio vaccine drops at vaccination points and also hand out albendazole tablets. Albendazole is a medication used to prevent intestinal worm infections that are common in Afghanistan, especially among young children.
Mawlasĩand Poole, the Ministry of Public Health, stated that the country’s health ministry urges parents to bring their children to the campaign sites so that they receive the polio vaccine and the worm‑cure tablets. The speech, delivered according to the Xinhua report, reiterated the government’s commitment to eradicating the disease that has repeatedly surfaced in the region in recent years.
The polio vaccine drops will be administered in a zero‑hour single‑dose regimen that researchers say is effective at stopping the spread of the virus among young children. Health officials say that the vaccine should be applied at the beginning of the four‑day campaign and that the same withdrawal of funds and logistical capacity have been put in place to cover the WHO criteria for a successful immunisation program.
Along with the vaccination, the albendazole tablets are intended to tackle another public health challenge that often afflicts children in rural regions: worm infections. The tablets will be distributed at the same sites where children receive the polio vaccine, according to the Health Ministry’s press release quoted by Xinhua.
According to the Ministry of Public Health’s statement, this campaign is part of a broader push to finally eradicate polio from Afghanistan. The polio disease has been a persistent threat in the region, and recent surveillance reports indicated outbreaks in remote provinces before the launch of this large‑scale campaign.
Health authorities’ focus on comprehensive coverage—almost 12.8 million children—was highlighted by the senior minister. He emphasized that the goal is to vaccinate almost every child in the target age group to break the chain of transmission and to achieve an elimination certification in line with WHO standards. The campaign, launched in the capital Kandahar and extending to provincial centres, will be monitored by international health agencies that are collaborating with Afghan government officials to track coverage data and address logistical gaps.