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HIGHLIGHTS
• It’s been a month since a 5.9 magnitude earthquake struck the southeastern region of Afghanistan on 22 June 2022, devasting Paktika and Khost provinces. A 4.2 magnitude aftershock hit Giyan district in Paktika province two days later (24 June 2022).
• Another aftershock with a magnitude of 5.1 hit the southeastern provinces of Afghanistan at 16:52 local time on 18 July 2022, struck Khost and Paktika provinces. The Ministry of Public Health (MoPH) announced that 32 people were injured in Paktika province (18 injuries in Ziruk, 13 in Giyan, and one in Barmal) and eight were injured in Spera in Khost province, and more than 40 homes were heavily damaged in Khost.
• In the past few weeks, the incidences of flash flooding have increased due to the heavy rains in the southeast region including Paktika and Khost provinces. Further damage to the infrastructure has been observed. The road between Khost City and Spera district was closed in several areas and the homes made of mud have become more fragile and at greater risk of collapse.
• Considering the frequent natural and man-made disasters, WHO continues its efforts to enhance the emergency preparedness and response capacity, including building mass casualty management, both at national and provincial levels. From 17 to 21 July, WHO completed the Basic Emergency Care (BEC) course at Gardez in Paktya province for 49 healthcare professionals (21 participants were female (42.9%)) from the four south-eastern provinces (Paktika, Ghazni, Paktya and Khost).
• The measles vaccination campaign for the earthquake-affected areas started on 23 July and will be completed on 28 July. The campaign covers seven districts in Paktika (6) and Khost (1) provinces targeting 125,267 children between 6 months and 14 years old.
• In support of MOPH, WHO has scaled up risk communication and community engagement on acute watery diarrhea and other infectious diseases in earthquake-affected areas. Ten teams composed of 21 social mobilizers were trained and deployed in Paktika to conduct dialogues in camps and communities.
• WHO and Health Cluster (HC) partners continue providing primary healthcare (PHC) services, including trauma care and mental health and psychosocial service (MHPSS).
• Despite all the efforts rapidly mobilized by WHO and HC partners, more funding is required to properly respond to the urgent life-saving needs of the affected people. WHO requests US$ 6 million for three months for health and WASH interventions – of which US$ 3.25 million were received, while the funding gap is US$2.75 million.