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WHO Afghanistan appeals for $10 million to provide health services to 700,000 returnees
The World Health Organization (WHO) on Thursday appealed for $10 million to provide essential health services and ensure health care access for a targeted 700,000 Afghan returnees as they re-enter the country.
About 1.3 million Afghans are expected to return to Afghanistan, voluntarily or by force, as a result of Pakistan’s policy to deport illegal migrants. This sudden and increased flux of returnees, along with other related factors, poses significant public health concerns. In particular, there is a risk of disease outbreaks and transmission of wild poliovirus at various points of entry, WHO warned in a statement.
The statement said that elevated risk of communicable diseases and epidemics is made worse by displacement, temporary relocation in camps, substandard living conditions, existing health issues, malnutrition, physical and mental stress (especially among elderly people and pregnant women), insecurity, exposure to extreme weather, and an overall lack of access to health services. These factors can put a strain on already fragile health and socioeconomic systems, adversely affecting both returnees and host communities, it added.
“Without timely assistance, there is the potential for an increase in morbidity and mortality rates owing to limited access to health services, especially for infectious diseases and other chronic conditions, essential maternal and child health services and emergency obstetrics care. Notably, there are gaps in the capacity of health providers to manage worsening emergency situations,” WHO said.
“As we welcome back Afghans into the country, it is our collective obligation to public health to ensure that we have systems and resources in place to prevent, prepare for and respond to public health risks,” said Dr Luo Dapeng, WHO Representative in Afghanistan. “WHO is well placed to ensure that we can take care of everyone’s health needs, especially those of women, children, elderly people and other vulnerable populations.”
WHO said that to address public health concerns at points of entry, it has positioned a team of health workers at each of the major border crossing areas in Afghanistan’s Nangarhar, Kandahar and Herat provinces. WHO-supported hospitals at Spin Boldak, Afghanistan (30 beds), and at Torkham, Pakistan (20 beds), will be operational within 2 weeks, it added.
Terrorist activities continue to be observed along Afghanistan borders and along the India–Pakistan–Afghanistan corridor, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview published on Monday.
Speaking to Russia-based media outlet TV BRICS, Lavrov pointed to ongoing concerns in the Middle East, including its Asian regions.
He highlighted the importance of collaboration with India at the United Nations to advance a global counter-terrorism convention.
Lavrov stated that while the draft convention has already been prepared, consensus on its adoption has not yet been reached.
Russia has repeatedly expressed concern about militant threats from Afghanistan. The Islamic Emirate, however, has dismissed the concerns saying that it will not allow Afghanistan’s soil to be used against any country.
Noorullah Noori, Afghanistan’s Minister of Borders and Tribal Affairs, held a phone conversation with Kazem Gharibabadi, Iran’s Deputy Foreign Minister for Legal and International Affairs, to discuss bilateral border cooperation.
According to the Iranian news agency IRNA, both sides reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening border collaboration, with a particular focus on the ongoing renovation and updating of border markers. They also agreed to accelerate joint technical and legal meetings to enhance coordination.
As part of the agreement, the next meeting of senior border officials from Afghanistan and Iran is scheduled to take place in Iran in 1405 (2026–2027).
The Director General of the OIC Mission in Kabul, Mohammed Saeed Alayyash, met on Sunday with Rolf Dieter Reinhard, Head of the German Liaison Office for Afghanistan in Doha and Acting Chargé d’Affaires of the German Embassy in Afghanistan.
During the discussion, both sides exchanged views on the latest developments in Afghanistan. They focused on the security situation, as well as the humanitarian and economic conditions faced by the Afghan people.
The two officials also reviewed recent political developments and broader challenges in the country, highlighting the need for continued international engagement and support.
The meeting emphasized the importance of ongoing cooperation and coordination between the OIC Mission and the German side in addressing Afghanistan’s challenges and in supporting efforts to promote stability and improve the humanitarian situation.
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