Afghanistan and Pakistan, the obstacle race for polio: the only countries in the world where the virus is still circulating, causing paralysis in children and newborns

KABUL (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Following the news that the Taliban have suspended their polio vaccination campaign, internal sources have reportedo that no official decree has been issued on the matter, and the Taliban Ministry of Public Health has expressed its willingness to conduct the vaccination campaign in mosques rather than continuing to use the door-to-door approach used so far.

There is a risk of ruining decades of efforts. Health experts have stressed, however, that this method also risks undermining decades of efforts to eradicate the virus and leading to a new epidemic, because most families living in remote areas are unable to take their children to the mosque for two doses of the vaccine. And the cases reported so far demonstrate this: of the 18 infections recorded this year (against 6 in 2023), 11 were detected in Kandahar, the power center of the Taliban leadership, where for years, due to restrictions on female workers, vaccinations have been carried out in mosques.

The role of women in Afghanistan for vaccinations. In the rest of Afghanistan, there are no problems with female polio workers, and in the areas where we have women workers, we have no cases. Before the Taliban reconquest in August 2021, women played a key role in the vaccination campaign, raising awareness among mothers and entering spaces off-limits to men. That’s why women workers were allowed to continue working in the health sector, despite a series of other Taliban bans on women’s work. But in rural villages in the southern provinces, those bordering Pakistan, several women said they were forced to resign because of the restrictions on their freedom.

The block for security reasons. This, however, is not the only reason that has prompted the Taliban to reconsider the vaccination campaign. “The reason behind the postponement of the polio campaign is problems with the implementation modality,” a health official explained anonymously. “The current government has ordered us not to conduct door-to-door campaigns” for “security” reasons, the source continued. “The south, especially Kandahar, is where Taliban leaders live, and they are worried that the campaigns could reveal their positions to foreign threats.” Or to members of the Islamic State, which has repeatedly targeted Taliban power centers with terrorist attacks in recent years.

The fake US vaccination campaigns. In the past, US intelligence services have also reportedly used fake vaccination campaigns to track down terrorists, fueling public distrust and the spread of false news by religious leaders.

Polio in Pakistan. Pakistan is also the only country in the world, along with Afghanistan, where polio still circulates among children and infants, spreading mainly through contaminated water and causing irreversible paralysis. And here too, 18 cases have been recorded this year, although the number is likely to be much higher. Most of the infections have been reported in Baluchistan, on the border with Iran and Afghanistan.

33 million children to be vaccinated. It is no coincidence: despite the efforts of the Pakistani government, which last week recruited 286,000 health workers to vaccinate 33 million children under five, there have already been two attacks against health workers and the police personnel assigned to their protection.