4-day anti-polio campaign kicks off in Afghanistan

KABUL, June 4 (Xinhua) -- Afghanistan's second nationwide anti-polio campaign of 2024 kicked off on Monday, aiming to protect Afghan children from paralysis, according to a statement by the country's Ministry of Public Health.

During the four-day campaign until June 6, more than 11.2 million children under five will be given polio vaccines, the statement said.

"The Ministry of Public Health is committed to eradicating the wild poliovirus with the cooperation of its partners in Afghanistan," said the newly-appointed Acting Minister of Public Health Mawlawi Noor Jalal Jalali.

There had been no reported cases of wild poliovirus in Afghanistan for five consecutive months, the World Health Organization reported in March. ■