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An Afghan street vendor sells masks at the main market in Kabul - Source: Reuters -
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Afghanistan declared a health emergency to help the government
prevent the rapid spread of H1N1, and ordered schools closed for
three weeks as part of measures against the deadly virus.
The government has also advised the public against gatherings such
as weddings in enclosed areas, after Afghanistan had its first
death attributed to the virus last week.
Nearly 350 positive cases of H1N1 have been detected among
foreigners and Afghans and several hundred more people are
suspected to be infected, a public health ministry spokesman
said.
The positive cases, 271 reported among expatriates and the rest
among Afghans, reflect a dramatic rise in infections registered in
recent months, Farid Raaid said.
"We have declared a health emergency state on the basis of which
all private (and) governmental educational institutions as well as
kindergartens have been ordered to close for three weeks."
An evaluation will be made after two weeks to determine whether to
reopen those institutions, he said.
The announcement of the health emergency comes amid uncertainty as
to whether the country will hold a run-off presidential election on
November 7 and if so how authorities planned to prevent the spread
of the virus that day.
The government has waged a massive public awareness campaign in the
country, battered by decades of war and where illiteracy is
high.
The UN World Health Organisation has pledged to provide one million
doses of vaccine to Afghans to tackle the disease, Raaid said.
