keralamonitor.com March 1, 2002

World Health Organization Afghanistan Health Update


Preparations are underway for a major national health sector planning
workshop to be held in Kabul from March 14th to 17th. The meeting has
been called by Dr. Suheila Sidiq, the Afghan Minister of Health and will
bring together delegates from all regions of Afghanistan, donors and
representatives from national and international health NGOs as well as
United Nations agencies. This is the first major national event on health
in Afghanistan and the outcome is expected to provide direction for
reconstruction in the years to come. WHO is sponsoring the workshop.

The agenda includes presentations by officials from the Afghan Ministry of
Health on the new policy and structure established for the ministry. This
will be followed by an opportunity for provincial health officials to
update participants on the health situation in their regions. These
presentations will reveal the number and status of hospitals, and health
facilities, available health personnel and support requirements for each
of Afghanistan's regions and provinces. A following session will set
health priorities for Afghan provinces and districts. Group work will
focus on developing strategies for management, coordination and community
involvement.

The national planning workshop will be preceded by a regional and
provincial training workshop bringing together provincial health
officials. The training will focus on providing participants with a
substantive overview of managing health care systems at the regional
level. Courses include how to develop planning and policies,
communication, leadership, logistics and management. This training
workshop is funded and facilitated by WHO.

Both workshops are crucial components of the health sector recovery
process. According to Dr. Abdi Momin, Who Medical Officer for the
Afghanistan, "this forum is designed to promote trust, transparency and
confidence among the partners in the health sector." The planning workshop
is the first national gathering bringing together all of the stakeholders
in the health sector following the recent change of authorities in
Afghanistan.