KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – The Taliban’s Ministry of Public Health has launched a new round of polio vaccination campaign across Afghanistan, which began today (May 26) and will continue for three days.
Sharafat Zaman Amarkhil, spokesperson for the ministry, said 11.8 million children under the age of five are expected to receive the polio vaccine during the campaign. In addition, Albendazole tablets will be distributed to children aged 24 to 59 months to prevent worm-related illnesses.
“The purpose of distributing these tablets is to prevent worm-related diseases in children,” the group’s spokesperson said.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), two human cases of polio have been confirmed in Afghanistan so far this year in Badghis and Helmand provinces. The WHO also reports 18 positive environmental samples of poliovirus across the country: eight in Kandahar, six in Helmand, and one each in Laghman, Kabul, Nangarhar, and Zabul.
The Taliban had suspended the polio vaccination campaign in September last year. Although no official announcement was made at the time, vaccinators on the ground attributed the suspension to the Taliban’s restrictions, particularly the requirement for male guardians to accompany female health workers.
In 2024, Afghanistan recorded 25 human cases of polio and 113 positive environmental samples. Most cases were concentrated in southern provinces—14 in Kandahar, seven in Helmand, two in Uruzgan, and one each in Kunar and Nuristan.
Health experts have repeatedly warned that Taliban restrictions on female health workers continue to undermine vaccination efforts.
In conservative communities, where male vaccinators are often not permitted to enter homes, female vaccinators are vital. Their exclusion has raised serious concerns that large parts of the population, especially children, may remain unprotected from the virus.
Afghanistan and Pakistan remain the only two countries in the world where polio has not yet been eradicated.
