Polio: Afghanistan reports first case in 2023

Afghanistan on Saturday reported its first polio case in 2023 after a four-year-old child became the latest victim of the crippling disease.

In a statement, the country’s Health Ministry said that the case was recorded in the Bati-Kot District of the eastern Province of Nangarhar.

According to the ministry, in 2022, two cases of the wild type of poliovirus were detected in Afghanistan.

The ministry said that a new polio vaccination campaign was being planned for the upcoming week, during which more than 6.4 million children would be vaccinated against the disease.

Vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan and Pakistan often encounter difficulties due to conspiracy theories that the polio vaccination causes infertility or that the vaccinators are being used as spies.

In many incidents, polio vaccinators have been attacked by extremists.

Polio is a viral disease that has no cure and can only be prevented by vaccination.

It can cause paralysis and lead to death.

(dpa/NAN)