The World Health Organization has urged families in Afghanistan to vaccinate their children, warning that many are missing routine immunizations that can prevent life-threatening diseases.

Marking World Immunization Week, observed annually from April 24 to 30, the agency said that vaccines remain one of the most effective tools to protect children, yet coverage in Afghanistan remains uneven.

“Visit the nearest health center and make sure your child is fully protected,” the organization said in a statement shared on social media.

Health officials say gaps in vaccination coverage leave children vulnerable to preventable illnesses, including polio, measles and other infectious diseases. Afghanistan remains one of the few countries where polio has not been fully eradicated, with periodic outbreaks raising concern among global health authorities.

Efforts to expand immunization have faced persistent challenges, including limited access to health services, public hesitancy and restrictions on vaccination campaigns in some areas. In recent years, Taliban have limited door-to-door polio vaccination drives in the country, a strategy long used to reach children in remote communities.

Aid agencies warn that such restrictions, combined with economic hardship and weaknesses in the health system, risk reversing gains made in child immunization over the past two decades.