SHARANA (PAN): A health centre was reopened in the Deela district of southeastern Paktika province on Saturday, 13 years after the facility was closed for security reasons, an official said.
Clashes between security forces and insurgents had been a key reason behind long closure of the health clinic, Public Health Director Dr. Wali Gul told Pajhwok Afghan News.
He said residents of the district were poor and could not afford taking their patients to Sharan, the provincial capital. “I am happy that the service has been resumed in an area where a majority of people are poor.”
The official said reopening came as a result of efforts by locals and tribal elders, who had vowed to protect health workers and keep security for the centre.
International Medical Corps (IMC) head for Paktika, Dr. Abdul Salam Bawarzai, said his organisation would provide all equipment and an eight-member team of staff to the clinic.
Tribal elder Haji Akbar Khan, happy over the development, said Deela residents faced numerous problems after the clinic was closed.
He recalled many patients had died on their way to hospital in the provincial capital, saying residents were so poor that they even could not afford transportation costs for their ailing family members.
The elder said he would support the clinic with all his abilities, requesting the government to construct a new building for the health centre.
