Four day long Polio vaccination campaign launched in Afghanistan

Kabul [Afghanistan], July 8 : A four-day-long Polio Vaccination campaign has been launched in Afghanistan's eastern region in order to put an end to the disease, Khaama Press reported on Saturday.

The campaign has been put up in the Afghan provinces of Nangarhar, Laghman, Kunar and Nuristan provinces.

The campaign started today and will continue for four days to immunize 1.2 million children in the said provinces of the country, according to the Taliban's Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan.

Dr Nek Wali Shah Momin, the director of the National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC), has encouraged people of these provinces to vaccinate their childrenincluding newbornsagainst the disease.

The Ministry carried out a four-day polio immunisation campaign in 23 provinces in May of this year earlier as well.

According to Khaama Press, it was launched across 23 provinces to immunize 6.4 million kids. According to the Ministry, five polio cases have been reported in Nangarhar this year, and one has died.

Acute hunger and poverty are the key reasons which have contributed to a deterioration of malnutrition conditions among vulnerable children across Afghanistan, facilitating the spread of the poliovirus.