Health
Measles outbreak kills 157 children in Badakhshan
More than 150 children died following the outbreak of measles in northeastern Badakhshan province, local officials said Friday.
According to the official, 117 children in the Kuf Ab district and 40 others in Darwazi Bala (Nusay) district died of measles in the past few days.
“At least 117 children died from measles diseases in 22 villages of [ Kuf Ab district],” a member of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) told Ariana News.
Most of the children who died were living in areas with no access to health services.
Provincial officials, meanwhile, have sent health teams and medicine to help local health workers to contain the outbreak.
Provincial Governor Deputy Mawlawi Nisar Ahmad Ahmadi stated that a health facility will be built for both Kuf Ab and Darwazi Bala districts early next year.
“People are dealing with too many problems here; I raised health services including building a hospital here to the health officials from the Center and Agha Khan who visited Badakhshan province; In spring the hospital would be inaugurated in order to resolve issues of the people here,” Ahmadi said.
Qari Nazir, Head of Badakhshan Public Health Directorate, said: “[We brought] 48 medicine boxes including injections and medical kits for 90,000 to 100,000 people.”
Afghanistan’s Minister of Public Health, Noor Jalal Jalali, has called for India’s cooperation in the standardization and development of traditional medicine during a meeting with India’s Minister for Ayurveda, Yoga & Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy (AYUSH), Prataprao Jadhav.
The meeting focused on establishing a traditional medicine institute and a research center in Kabul, cooperation in training qualified professionals, and the signing of a bilateral memorandum of understanding. Minister Jalali stressed that standardizing traditional medicine is a pressing priority for Afghanistan and noted that India’s extensive expertise in this field would be highly beneficial.
For his part, the AYUSH minister reaffirmed India’s commitment to supporting Afghanistan by assisting in the establishment of a research center and institute in Kabul, developing and implementing academic curricula, and expanding cooperation across various areas related to traditional medicine.
Noor Jalal Jalali, Minister of Public Health of Afghanistan, held a meeting in Kabul with representatives of the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the Asian Development Bank, the European Union, the UK Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and other international organizations.
According to the ministry’s statement, representatives of these international organizations discussed the delivery of health and development services, improving the management of aid and resources in the health sector, integrating health facilities and aligning them with the new policy, providing health services in accordance with the Ministry of Public Health’s policy, strengthening the immunization and vaccination sector, delivering services based on priorities, and ensuring sustained coordination.
During the meeting, Jalali stressed the need for transparency and attention to the ministry’s priorities in order to enhance the effectiveness and impact of health services. He added that the delivery of health services must be carried out in line with the ministry’s policy and through better management of existing international assistance.
Referring to vaccination campaigns, he stated that the recent measles and polio vaccination campaign had been implemented very successfully, and emphasized that necessary preparations should be made for upcoming campaigns.
He also provided information regarding the review of the BPHS and EPHS health packages and the establishment of a standardized system through technical committees.
In this meeting, Edwin Ceniza, the WHO Representative for Afghanistan, reaffirmed the organization’s continued cooperation with the Ministry of Public Health and expressed appreciation to the ministry’s leadership for their tireless efforts to improve the health system.
Representatives of these organizations pledged to maintain effective and sustained coordination and to provide their services within the country in accordance with the policies and principles of the Ministry of Public Health.
Abdul Wali Haqqani, Deputy Minister for Health Services at the Ministry of Public Health of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA), has departed for Turkey on an official visit accompanied by a high-ranking delegation.
According to a statement released by the Health Ministry on Wednesday, the trip aims to acquire new health-sector expertise, assess Turkish medical and scientific institutions, meet with Turkish health and government officials, and strengthen bilateral cooperation.
During the visit, the delegation is scheduled to meet representatives from both public and private health sectors to support improvements in Afghanistan’s healthcare system and enhance coordination between the two countries, the statement added.
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