Egypt
The Regional Director of Global Health concludes the second visit to Afghanistan to eradicate polio
Dr. Hanan Hassan Balkhi, WHO Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean, concluded a 3-day visit to Afghanistan where she met with the country’s de facto authorities, health officials and humanitarian partners to discuss critical health priorities.
Central to the discussions were Afghanistan’s efforts to eradicate polio, promote equitable access to quality health care, address substance use disorders, and invest in a sustainable health workforce.
During her visit, Dr. Hanan traveled to Mazar-i-Sharif in the northern region of the country, where she opened the 50-bed Balkh Drug Addiction Treatment Center for Women and Children, which is one of 12 drug addiction treatment centers and receives vital support from the World Health Organization and partners.< /div>
She also visited the 50-bed infectious diseases hospital, interacted with patients and health workers, and stressed the importance of strengthening the capacity of medical staff and improving access to healthcare services for vulnerable and at-risk populations across Afghanistan.
Substance abuse is one of the growing public health challenges in the Eastern Mediterranean Region, and in Afghanistan in particular. With more than 4 million people in the country suffering from substance use disorders, there is an urgent need for focused action and global support. To address this urgent problem, WHO, in cooperation with its partners, aims to reduce morbidity, mortality and social costs. associated with substance use disorders, through context-specific and evidence-based public health interventions.
Dr. Hanan highlighted the organization’s commitment to providing support to people suffering from substance use disorders, and ensuring their full integration into society.
She added, “We can achieve this and ensure a better and healthier life for the people of Afghanistan in cooperation with the country’s health authorities and our partners.”
Dr. Hanan indicated that most of the patients she visited at the Infectious Diseases Hospital in Balkh suffer from diseases that can be prevented by vaccines, such as tetanus, meningitis, tuberculosis, liver failure, and cirrhosis due to hepatitis B, and this requires greater efforts to ensure increased vaccine uptake and coverage in the expanded program. For immunization.
To this end, Dr. Hanan has called for increased awareness and advocacy among patients visiting the hospital and their broader communities about the importance of the Expanded Program on Routine Immunization.
During her contributions on polio eradication, Dr. Hanan and other representatives from the Global Polio Eradication Initiative reaffirmed the global commitment to eradicating polio, and stressed the need to renew political and administrative commitments and strengthen cooperation to halt the transmission of wild poliovirus once and for all.
Recognizing the importance of close coordination on polio eradication between Afghanistan and Pakistan, which form a single epidemiological cluster, and the need for broader bilateral cooperation on other health priorities, Dr. Hanan is facilitating a health dialogue between the two countries with the participation and support of the vital national leadership in both countries.< /font>
Dr. Hanan, in her meeting with representatives of United Nations agencies in Afghanistan, emphasized “health in all agencies” and on the strategic integration of health into development efforts, highlighting the need for unified action to address the critical health challenges facing Afghanistan.
This participation comes within the framework of the World Health Organization’s commitment to strengthening partnerships that seek to achieve sustainable and impactful health outcomes for local communities throughout the country.
Recognizing the grave concern that restrictions on female health workers’ access to formal education will impact the ability to continue providing health services, Dr. Hanan reaffirmed her active determination to advocate for female education and rights as part of the overall efforts to advance Afghanistan’s health agenda.
It is noteworthy that the humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan is one of the most severe crises in the world. The country suffers from one of the highest levels of food insecurity in the world. Waves of drought, displacement, and the burden of poverty continue, and above all, natural disasters exacerbate the situation.
Therefore, humanitarian needs have increased significantly, for example, increasing the number of people in need from 18.4 million people in mid-2021 to approximately 23.7 million people in 2024. About 17.9 million of them need urgent health assistance.
