Health minister meets with WHO official over polio program in Afghanistan

KABUL (Ariana News): The Minister of Public Health of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, Mawlawi Noor Jalal Jalali, convened a meeting Monday with senior officials from the World Health Organization’s (WHO) polio program to discuss efforts to eradicate the disease in the country.

According to WHO, Afghanistan continues to be affected by ongoing endemic wild poliovirus transmission. So far this year nine cases have been reported – compared to six cases last year.

On Monday, Dr. Hamid Jafari, the head of WHO’s polio eradication program for the Eastern Mediterranean region, attended the meeting. The parties deliberated on Afghanistan’s polio eradication initiatives, and on the full operationalization of the polio laboratory, and the challenges confronting the polio program.

Jalali meanwhile requested funding and capacity enhancement for the remaining equipment required for the polio laboratory, underscoring the need to have it fully operational.

WHO officials assured Jalali that the remaining equipment for the polio laboratory would be delivered soon.

Currently, Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only two countries in the world that still record polio cases every year.