KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – A new polio vaccination campaign began on Monday in selected districts across Afghanistan, the Afghanistan Polio-Free initiative said, as confirmed cases of the disease continue to increase in the country.
The campaign will cover all districts of Nangarhar province, seven districts in Kunar, six in Kabul, two in Herat and two in Farah, according to a statement posted by the initiative dedicated to eradicating polio in Afghanistan.
The campaign aims to respond quickly to recently confirmed polio cases and prevent further transmission of the virus, it said.
The drive comes days after health authorities confirmed a new case in southern Uruzgan province, involving a two-year-old girl who tested positive for polio.
Afghanistan has recorded 16 cases so far this year, the highest number reported, the World Health Organization said. The country and neighboring Pakistan are the only two nations still grappling with endemic wild poliovirus.
Polio is a highly infectious viral disease that primarily affects children under the age of five. It spreads through contaminated food, water, or close contact and can cause irreversible paralysis and, in some cases, death. There is no cure, though vaccination provides effective protection against the disease.
Global immunization campaigns have reduced wild poliovirus cases by more than 99% since 1988. Transmission persists only in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Vaccination efforts in both countries have been hindered by insecurity, difficult terrain, and misinformation that has fueled resistance to immunization in some communities.
The WHO has stressed that maintaining high vaccination coverage, conducting uninterrupted immunization campaigns and reaching every child are critical to eliminating polio in the two countries.
