The first round of polio vaccination campaign for this year will kick off on Monday in several provinces of the country.

The Polio Eradication Initiative Center said that under the campaign, 5.7 million children will receive vaccination.

“We are aiming to vaccinate 5.7 million children,” said Nik Wali Shah Momin, head of the center.

People from different provinces asked the Ministry of Public Health to increase the public awareness about the program.

“They should conduct pubic awareness programs for the people for launching this campaign because people don't know yet about the benefits of the polio vaccination,” said Ihsanullah, a resident of Kabul.

“We call on the Public Health Ministry to remove polio cases,” said Zabiullah, a Kabul resident.

“The main reasons that polio has not been eradicated is lack of people’s awareness about the vaccination,” said Sediqullah, a resident of Nangarhar.

“The negative thoughts should be ended. Then our children can be healthy,” said Parwiz, a resident of Kunar.

Afghanistan and Pakistan are the only two countries where polio has yet to be eradicated. Based on the statistics of the Public Health Ministry, only two positive cases of polio were registered in Afghanistan in 2022.