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Japan Signs Two Agreements for Health Services, Eradication of Polio in Afghanistan
The embassy announced, “the new projects are to help eradicate polio and prevent the spread of other deceases in Afghanistan, and to improve the livelihood in Tajik-Afghan cross-border areas for improvement of self-reliance and stability of the region.”
The projects approximately worth $8.6 million and $9.1 million, respectively, will help to procure the vaccines to protect 10.3 million children against polio, reach 1.37 million children with routine immunization and 2.5 million women of child bearing age in Afghanistan, and improve the livelihood of 1.8 million people living in border districts in Tajikistan and Afghanistan.
In the UNICEF’s Project “Infectious Diseases Prevention for Children in Afghanistan” (USD 8.6m), the contribution from the people of Japan will be used to procure routine vaccines for an annual cohort of some 1.37 million children under the age of one.
The vaccines include BCG against tuberculosis, Oral Polio Vaccine (OPV) for poliomyelitis, Meals vaccine and Hepatitis B.
In addition, some 2.5 million women of child-bearing age will benefit from the purchase of Tetanus Toxoid vaccine. These vaccines will be available for free at all health facilities and through the polio campaign.
At the signing ceremony, Ferozudin Feroz, Minister of Public Health said, “With continued support from the Government of Japan, we have succeeded in ensuring the provision of health services including the immunization services for the children and mothers of Afghanistan. We assure you that we will maintain our focus on routine immunization as one of the key pillars for stopping the circulation of the polio virus in Afghanistan. We hope that you will continue to keep routine immunization in Afghanistan as one of your top priorities, and I wish to thank you in advance for your future support to the Routine Immunization Programme in Afghanistan.”
The UNDP’s Project“Livelihood Improvement in Tajik-Afghan Cross-Border Areas (LITACA) Phase II” (USD 9.1 M) will be built on the past achievements of LITACA Phase I, which was also funded by the Government of Japan.
The project aims to improve living standards of the people in six districts in four provinces in Afghanistan (Shahr-e-buzurg District in Badakhshan Province, Cha Ab, Yang-e-Qala and Dasht-e-Qala Districts in Takhar Province, Imam Sahib District of Kunduz Province, and Khulm District of Balkh province) and eight districts in Khatlon Province in Tajikistan.
Furthermore, the project intends to promote stability and security of these cross-border areas, by ensuring self-reliance of the local people, reducing poverty, supporting economic development of the regions and encouraging cross-border collaboration among the communities. LITACA II will be implemented in line with the Citizen’s Charter of the Government of Afghanistan.
Japan has been assisting Afghanistan’s nation-building efforts in various fields including security, infrastructure, agriculture, rural development, human capacity development, education, health, culture and humanitarian assistance. The cumulative Japanese assistance to Afghanistan since 2001 amounts to $6.4 billion.
Edited by: Muhammad ZackArya