The International Ulama Conference on Polio Eradication in Afghanistan
On 22 – 23 February 2016 an International Ulama Conference on Polio Eradication was held in Kabul, Afghanistan, in cooperation with the Government of Afghanistan, the Islamic Development Bank in Jeddah, Al Azahar Al Sharief, the Organization of the Islamic Cooperation and the International Islamic Fiqh Academy.
The main objective of the conference was gaining the support of the Religious Scholars to effectively implement the health programmes, with special focus on vaccination and more specifically poliomyelitis eradication.
Ulama and scholars representing different regions of Afghanistan participated in the conference where discussions revolved around barriers to vaccination, their root causes and strategies for overcoming them and restoring the confidence of vaccinators/health workers, and the role of Ulama in reaching children in inaccessible areas.
The Conference issued a Declaration/Fatwa reiterating maximum solidarity with the global polio eradication programme, endorsement of the usage of oral polio vaccine currently in use, and reaffirming all the national and international Fatwas issued in its favor.