To bring disease surveillance systems to the next level, both local and international public health officials must take advantage of advances in information technology.  On April 12, World Health Organization (WHO) and Afghan MoPH personnel completed their first comprehensive training on geographical information systems (GIS).  Disease Early Warning System Afghanistan and its partners (WHO, USAID, and UNFPA) initiated the process of training public health professionals in the field with the goal of improving disease surveillance in the country.

“This training is a stepping stone to building future capacity of our public health managers and surveillance units at the regional level,” said WHO representative for Afghanistan Peter Graaff.  “This is the first GIS training program launched in Afghanistan for public health experts and data managers.  Today, WHO and the Economic and Social Research Institute International will certify 15 training participants.  These participants are public health experts and data managers representing all regions of Afghanistan.”

The training will be followed by establishing GIS units in all regions of Afghanistan and at the national level.  This training course will be offered yearly for entry-level public health professionals and data managers, and four refresher trainings per year are scheduled for those who completed the first course.  Using mapping software to track disease outbreaks and other public health issues of concern will improve healthcare delivery for the people of Afghanistan.