UN agencies were informed that the Taliban had suspended polio vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan ahead of planned immunization in September
Shabana Maani, gives a polio vaccination to a child in the old part of Kabul, Afghanistan, Monday, March 29, 2021. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul, File)(AP)
The Taliban-controlled government in Afghanistan has suspended all polio vaccination campaigns in the country, according to the United Nations.
According to an AP report, Taliban had made no official statement and no reasoning was given for suspending vaccination campaigns ahead of planned immunization in September.
A senior official from the World Health Organisation (WHO) told AP that they were aware of discussions to move away from house-to-house vaccinations and carry out immunizations in mosques.
Dr Hamid Jafari from the WHO said, regarding the possibility of shifting towards site vaccinations rather than house-to-house vaccinations, “Partners are in the process of discussing and understanding the scope and impact of any change in current policy.”
In June, 2024, a nationwide campaign in Afghanistan started using the house-to-house vaccinations, which would reach a majority of children. It was found to be much more effective than the site-to-site vaccinations, popular in southern Kandahar, the base of the Taliban supreme leader Hibatullah Akhundzad.
The WHO confirmed 18 cases of polio in Afghanistan this year, out of which only two are in the south of the country. This number has increased significantly from 6 cases confirmed in 2023.
They also pointed out that since women's inclusion remains around 20 per cent, there is inadequate access to immunization for children, especially in areas like Kandahar.
Afghanistan, along with neighbouring country Pakistan, has never been able to stop the spread of the paralysing and often fatal disease, necessitating vaccination campaigns even more.
However, the country may have fallen prey to anti-vaccination rhetoric which has gained ground in Pakistan as well. According to news agency AP, militants in Pakistan regularly target vaccination campaigns and the police assigned to protect them.
This is due to popular belief that the vaccination campaigns are a Western conspiracy to sterilise children in Pakistan. The WHO has stated that rolling back vaccinations in Afghanistan could bring risk to Pakistan as well due to high population movement.
Afghanistan's campaign suspension could land a major blow to global efforts to eradicate polio as the initiative struggled with costly campaigns and mistakes in strategy.
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