Migration Health

IOM’s Migration Health Unit provides essential health services to mobile and hard-to-reach populations in Afghanistan. Through Mobile Health Teams (MHTs), IOM provides essential primary health services, such as outpatient consultations, mental health and psychosocial support, reproductive health care, and emergency and critical care referrals. MHTs are present at border crossing points with the Islamic Republic of Iran and Pakistan and in the eight IOM run reception and transit centres for returnees to facilitate medical screening and assistance, as well as in informal settlements hosting large numbers of IDPs, and in other vulnerable communities.

Through Rapid Response Teams (RRTs), IOM is able to reach the most vulnerable and remote communities with COVID-19 services, such as screening and disease surveillance, health promotion, capacity building and COVID-19 testing and laboratory services. Those assessed, treated and screened are routinely provided with COVID-19 preventive information. Teams of mobile vaccinators administer COVID-19 vaccines to migrants, internally displaced and their host communities.

IOM coordinates closely with partners and stakeholders across the country and is rapidly increasing its capacity to adapt and fill urgent gaps to support the health system both in the shorter and longer term. IOM also remains committed to supporting the Health Cluster and partners, to support the national vaccination programme related to COVID-19 and other communicable diseases, and to mobilize its unique capacity, in order to ensure that some of the country’s hardest-to-reach populations have access to health and immunization services.

IOM's migration health programming is operational in eight provinces bordering Pakistan, Iran, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan and has over 200 dedicated staff working on health programmes.

Migration Health activities in Afghanistan are funded by Canada, the US, the Government of Japan, Germany, EU, UK AID, WHO, CERF, Afghanistan Humanitarian Fund, UNICEF, The Global Fund, UNDP, UNFPA