Seven months since Afghanistan’s first COVID-19 case, women like Farida sustain the response. “I chose to continue to do public health awareness during the COVID-19 pandemic. I wanted to help save people’s lives and continue to serve my people,” says Farida, a polio worker and volunteer for the COVID-19 response.  Seven months since the first...

3 February 2021 —The Government of Japan has announced its decisionto provide US$ 122.2 million to support humanitarian and developmentprogrammes in Afghanistan. Through this newdisbursement, sourced from Japan’s fiscal year 2020 supplementary budget,an array of humanitarian and development assistance projects will beconducted. This is a...

26 January, 2021 – The EU-Delegation in Kabul announced an additional support of 35 million euros to tackle the ongoing pandemic and mitigate its socioeconomic impacts in Afghanistan. Since the start of the pandemic, the EU has mobilized almost 147 million euros to address the immediate health crisis and provide humanitarian assistance to people in...

Kabul, 18 January 2021 – The Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan, in collaboration with UNICEF and WHO, will begin the first national polio immunization campaign of 2021 today. The 5-day campaign will aim to vaccinate over 9.9 million children under the age of 5 across the country. As efforts to eradicate polio are intensified, declining immunity...

Volunteers in north eastern Afghanistan. Photo: Shaim Shahin/WHO Afghanistan 20 December 2020 – Vaccinators tackle winter conditions and challenging contexts during Afghanistan’s last polio campaign of the year. On a wintery November day, vaccinators across Afghanistan wrapped up warm, checked that they had facemasks and hand sanitizer, and...

KABUL, Afghanistan, 24 October 2019 – As the world commemorates World Polio Day, the Ministry of Public Health, UNICEF, WHO and partners are taking a moment to recognize the tremendous efforts made by polio eradication frontline workers, who continue to work under difficult and challenging conditions to reach every child. “Today, as we mark World...

Dr Elaha, at 22 years old, is a medical graduate and a District Polio Officer. She’s also helping fight the COVID-19 pandemic in Afghanistan.   “COVID-19 has affected both our work life and personal life. When I joined the polio team, I had plans to take initiative and look for innovative ways to fight polio, however, with the COVID-19 pandemic all...

I have worked against all odds “I chose to continue to do public health awareness during the COVID-19 pandemic. I wanted to help save people’s lives and continue to serve my people,” says Nasrin Ahmadi, a polio worker and volunteer for the COVID-19 response in Mazar, Balkh province.

14 October 2020: A multidisciplinary team from WHO’s Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean has concluded a mission to Afghanistan to review the ongoing response to COVID-19, identify gaps and potential risks, and provide recommendations for strengthening response and control measures. Despite insecurity, natural disasters and other...

29 September 2020 – The Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan, in cooperation with health partners, began a polio vaccination campaign in 10 provinces of the country on 28 September. The campaign will be conducted for 5 days, during which 2 million children under 5 will be vaccinated across 112 districts of Paktia, Paktika, Khost, Ghazni,...