Afghanistan: UN-supported deworming campaign launched

Ahead of this weekend’s elections in Afghanistan, United Nations agencies today announced the launch of a national campaign to deworm 6 million children in the country, preventing a range of chronic ailments with a single pill.

“It is tragic that children in this country are suffering because of worms when they can be so easily treated,” said Charles Vincent, Country Director for Afghanistan for the UN World Food Programme (WFP). “Deworming children will not only improve their general health but it will also enable them to study better at school."

The national programme is targeted at treating six-to-12-year-olds for intestinal parasites or worms, a common disease which leaves a high percentage of Afghan children feeling generally unwell and causes such problems as reduced growth rate, learning problems and anaemia in the long term.

Fortunately, the worms can be eradicated with one 500 mg tablet of Mebendazol. The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) provided 6.5 million tablets for this year’s campaign and the UN World Health Organization (WHO) contributed $20,000 to buy 1 million. WFP will assist with distribution and instruction in proper treatment.

“This campaign is complex, as it aims to reach millions of children, many of them in remote areas and many of them not even at school. But with ministries taking the lead and UN agencies pooling their expertise and resources, we can make a big difference,” Mr. Vincent said.

The campaign will take place in two rounds. Six million children will be treated across the country in the coming weeks and in early 2006, there are plans for a second dosage to be given to over 1 million children in urban areas, where there are higher rates of infestation.

The last deworming campaign, in 2004, targeted 4.5 million children.

In other news from Afghanistan as it heads into Sunday’s elections, the United Nations Volunteers (UNV) reports that 130 of its members are today preparing to assist in the polling.

For the past nine months, UNVs have been working with the United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS) to register an additional 2.5 million voters, disseminate civic education messages in remote villages, and train tens of thousands of election officials.

The UNV Programme Manager in Afghanistan, Marc Spurling, said that the volunteers have been able to carry out their tasks despite the high-threat environment.

"It is a great honour for me to lead a team of committed and selfless professionals, who despite incredible obstacles and legitimate concerns, work directly at the grassroots level to ensure that democracy in Afghanistan becomes a reality," he said.