Ceasefire for polio immunisation in Afghanistan

Islamabad (Office of the United Nations Co-ordinator for Afghanistan), 6 October 2000 -- Both the Taliban and the Northern Alliance have given their commitment to respect a cease-fire during the next rounds of National Immunisation Days (NIDs) against poliomyelitis, from 10-12 October and from 13-15 November 2000. Based on the figures of the May/June 2000 NIDs in Afghanistan, the target figure is 5.33 million children.
During the last rounds in May and June 2000, both sides respected a cease-fire. With access to all areas, vaccinators could reach all areas at the same time, and achieve higher coverage than ever.

All children from birth up to 5 years of age need to be reached. Special attention is given to include new-borns, as all children need to be vaccinated. Additional measures will be taken to ensure that internally displaced children will be reached, as well as nomads and other "hard-to-reach" people. People crossing borders will also require special attention.

Preparatory meetings with all involved partners in the region have been held to ensure that no child, even those who move from one country to another, will be left out. In Pakistan, the NIDs will take place on the same dates as in Afghanistan to help to ensure full coverage.

The partners include local authorities, a wide range of NGOs, radio programmes, UNICEF, WHO, other UN agencies, and donors. Local authorities have convened planning meetings, participated in social mobilisation and inaugurations of NID events, and are involved in monitoring.

Volunteers play a crucial role during the vaccination. During the next rounds, vaccinators will follow a "house-to-house "strategy to ensure that no child is missed. Previous rounds demonstrated that female volunteers are especially effective, and it is hoped that the number of female volunteers will be increased during the next rounds.

Polio, a preventable disease, is still endemic in 30 countries, including Afghanistan. Polio can kill children and it can cripple children for life. Polio continues to place a burden on the Afghan population in terms of social/mental suffering, lost productivity and increased need for medical and rehabilitative resources.

Considerable work remains to be done to achieve polio eradication from the world as a whole. With increased efforts, the target of certifying the world polio free by 2005 can be met. In addition to saving lives, this achievement will lead to subsequent worldwide annual savings of US $ 1.5 billion due to cessation of vaccine administration and averted health care costs. These savings can be channelled into preventing other diseases.

For further information, please contact:

UNICEF Afghanistan--Dr. Solofo Ramaroson, 92-51 2214702
WHO Afghanistan--Dr. Luis Naveed Sadozai, mobile 0300 550529; Dr. Rana Graber, 2252272, 2251645