Afghanistan marks one year of Coronavirus

One year ago today, February 24, the first case of COVID-19 was recorded in Herat, after which the virus gradually spread to all provinces of Afghanistan.

Over the course of the year, nearly 2,500 people have died from the disease in Afghanistan, and over 55,000 positive cases have been recorded.

Coinciding with the one-year infection anniversary, Afghanistan’s vaccine program was officially launched in Herat, with health workers receiving the first shots.

In the past year, 9,222 people were infected with the virus in Herat, of which 431 died. Of these, 296 are men and 135 are women. Officials at the Herat Public Health Department said to date seven doctors in Herat alone have died from the virus.

Herat meanwhile was not only the first hotspot in the country – but it has also suffered a serious second wave, which led to a total lockdown of the city.

As a result, government has, in just three weeks, completed a 100-bed hospital for COVID-19 patients.

New cases have meanwhile started to subside.

On Tuesday, the first vaccines – the Covishield vaccine supplied by India – were administered in Kabul at a ceremony attended by President Ashraf Ghani. The first recipients were health workers, security force members and journalists.

India donated 500,000 doses of AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine earlier this month.

The Public Health Ministry said that 250,000 people – mostly health workers and Afghan security forces and media workers – would be inoculated in the first stage.

The vaccine is now being administered in three provinces – Kabul, Herat and Baghlan.