Pakistan to launch anti-polio drive on Dec. 16 as national tally hits 63 this year

This photograph taken on October 5, 2024 shows a health worker marking a house during a door-to-door poliovirus vaccination campaign for children on the outskirts of Peshawar. (AFP/File)

• Pakistan and Afghanistan are only two countries in world where poliovirus remains endemic
• The upcoming vaccination drive will target 44 million children across 143 districts nationwide

KARACHI: Pakistan’s polio program has said that it will launch an anti-polio vaccination drive from Dec. 16 till Dec. 22 as the nationwide tally of polio cases reached 63 this year.
Polio is a paralyzing disease that has no cure. Multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine and completion of the routine vaccination schedule for all children under the age of five is essential to provide children high immunity against this terrible disease.
Pakistan is responding to an intense resurgence of Wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) this year, with 63 cases reported so far. Of these, 26 are from Balochistan, 18 from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 17 from Sindh, and one each from Punjab and Islamabad.
“A large-scale polio vaccination campaign is being held in the country from December 16 to December 22 during which vaccinators will go house to house to immunize more than 44 million children under five in 143 districts against polio,” the Pakistan polio program said on Friday.
“To keep children safe, it is critical for parents to welcome vaccinators among them and bring their children forward for vaccination.”
On Saturday, the health department in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province said the upcoming vaccination drive in the province would target 10.6 million children under the age of five years to protect them from the debilitating poliovirus.
“Over 80,000 frontline workers will participate in the campaign, going door-to-door to ensure that no child is left unvaccinated,” it said in a statement. “To provide a secure environment for these efforts, 15,000 security personnel will be deployed across Sindh.”
The health department noted that the province had reported 17 cases of the virus this year, which highlighted the urgent need for effective vaccination campaigns.
“The situation remains critical, with most environmental samples testing positive for the virus, indicating ongoing circulation,” it said.
“This is the last campaign of the year, making it imperative that every child is vaccinated to stop the transmission of the virus and protect them from a lifetime of disability.”
For those who miss the vaccination during the campaign, the Emergency Operations Center’s Sehat Tahaffuz Helpline 1166 or WhatsApp Helpline 0346-7776546 would be available to provide assistance and information, the health department added.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the last two countries in the world where the poliovirus remains endemic. Public health studies in Pakistan have shown that a lack of knowledge about vaccines, together with poverty and rural residency, are also factors that commonly influence whether parents vaccinate their children against polio.