Second International Public Health Conference
November 19 and 20,2008
This annual event is an important forum for professional and academic exchanges between experts from Afghanistan and from other countries.
The opening session on the morning of November 19, was attended by government Ministers, Deputy Ministers representing ten ministries, Governor of Kabul, representatives from the Presidential Office, the National Assembly, and the Provincial Health Directorates, and other senior state representatives, as well as representatives from donor agencies, international and national NGOs, UN agencies, and Kabul hospitals.
The first day’s program, which was attended by national and international delegates and guests, began with a recitation of some verses from the Holy Quran. The Conference was formally inaugurated by the Deputy Technical Minister of Economy, Prof. Nazeer Ahmad Shahidi. Inaugural speeches were also made by the Deputy Minister of Education, Dr. Abdul Ghafoor Ghaznavi, and Haji Deen Mohammad, Governor Kabul. Other dignitaries present included the Presidential Spokesperson Mr. Mohammad Homayun Hamidzada, Deputy Minister of Agriculture, Mr. Ghulam Mustafa Jawad, Ex-Prime Minister, Engineer Ahmadshah Ahmadzai, Ex-Deputy Minister of Public Health, Dr. Ferozuddin Feroz.
The Directors of the two host Institutions (IbnSina IPHMS and APHI MOPH) opened the day’s program with brief presentations about the history, progress and achievements of their respective institutes.
The first presentation was on the topic of Health and Islam, by Dr. Anwarulhaq Jabarkhail, President and CEO of IbnSina Afghanistan. He presented the concept, that Islam is the true and only way to good health as defined by the WHO, and that every Islamic injunction promotes good health and every prohibition prevents unhealthy practices.
Dr. Faizullah Kakar, Deputy Minister of Public Health made a presented some interesting findings regarding the Gulran disease Outbreak in Hirat province of Afghanistan, linking it to consumption in substantial quantity, of a wild seed called ‘charmak’, that often get mixed with wheat in these areas.
A presentation on Obesity and Health Risks was done by Mr. Fayaz Ahmad, Deputy Director, Institute of Management Sciences Pakistan, followed by a presentation on Disease Early Warning System in Afghanistan, by Dr. Mir Jawad Ahmad Mufleh, Director of Disease Early Warning System/ HI Coordinator at the Afghan Public Health Institute of the MOPH.
The final presentation of the day was a speech about Advocacy for Safe Motherhood by Ms.Pashtoon Azfar, President of the Midwives’ Association of Afghanistan, who presented shocking statistics about the status of mothers in Afghanistan, made a moving appeal for active interventions to improve maternal health and promote safe motherhood.
Concluding remarks on the first day’s proceedings, were made by Dr. Mirza Jan, IbnSina Afghanistan Country Director.
The first presentation on the second day was on Managing Reproductive Health Services in India, by Prof. Dhirendra Kumar, M.Phil, Ph.D from the Indian Institute of Health Management and Research, Jaipur India.
This was followed by an Infomercial entitled ‘Healthy Choices Strong Families’, produced by COMPRI-A Social Marketing Project, contributed by Constella Futures.
The next presentation entitled Household Care of the Newborn - A Qualitative Research Initiative in Rural Afghanistan, was presented jointly by Dr. Sadia, Safe Motherhood Initiative Director, Department of Reproductive Health, MOPH, and Dr. Ehsan Tariq, Health Advisor Save the Children US.
The next presentation was about the Balanced Score Card Tool in the Afghan Health Care context, by Dr.M. Ashraf Mashkor, Head of HMIS Department, MOPH.
The final presentation was a Report on Outbreak of Criamen Congo Hemorrhagic Fever in Hirat Province of Afghanistan by Dr. Mir Jawad Ahmad Mufleh, Disease Early Warning System Director and HI Coordinator, APHI MOPH of Afghanistan.
Concluding remarks were made by The IbnSina Country Director, Dr. Mirza Jan, in which he emphasized the need for coordinated initiatives by various line ministries including the Ministries of Education, Public Health, Higher Education, Agriculture and others, to promote the incorporation of Islamic teachings into practical implementation of their activities, as the only complete means of achieving good health. Another important recommendation was to incorporate the subject of Health and Islam into the official secondary education curriculum, as well as the curriculum for medical students and for post graduate studies in Public Health, in the country.
On the afternoon of the second day, IbnSina Afghanistan celebrated its twelfth anniversary.
