Afghanistan Signs US$5.3 Million Contract to Boost Polio Vaccination

Kabul (ANTARA) — Afghanistan’s Ministry of Public Health on Tuesday (21 July) signed a contract worth US$5.3 million (US$1 = Rp17,909) with the international organisation Action Against Hunger (AAH) to strengthen oral polio vaccination efforts in two remote southern provinces, Uruzgan and Helmand.

The one-year contract aims to improve the quality, coverage and accessibility of immunisation services.

Under the agreement, 487,156 residents will receive oral polio vaccination services through 50 health facilities, whilst 422 new health-sector jobs will be created for local communities.

The initiative was launched at a critical time, as Afghanistan’s health sector remains fragile.

Communities in remote and mountainous areas still face numerous obstacles in accessing health services due to poor infrastructure, limited transport options, and severe shortages of essential medical supplies and trained health workers.

Polio remains a public health problem in Afghanistan, one of the few countries in the world where wild poliovirus is still endemic.

Expanding vaccination coverage in hard-to-reach areas is considered essential to breaking the chain of transmission and protecting children from the disease, which can cause paralysis.