Islamabad, November 26, 2023 : Starting Monday, a nationwide five-day anti-polio campaign is set to commence.
In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, over 7.4 million children under the age of five will receive polio drops from 31,000 teams during the campaign. Balochistan has assembled more than 11,000 teams to vaccinate 2.5 million children, with the campaign initiated in Quetta, Pishin, and Qilla Abdullah on Friday, according to the Polio Emergency Operation Center.
In Sindh, over 80,000 workers will conduct door-to-door vaccinations for more than 10 million children across 30 districts. Additionally, the Sindh chief secretary has instructed the health department to ensure polio drops are administered to children at all railway stations and bus terminals.
Teams administering polio vaccines will be stationed at bus stops, railway stations, Afghan refugee camps, and various public places to guarantee comprehensive vaccination coverage for every child.
As of November 11, the Ministry of Health reported the fifth case of polio in Pakistan this year, involving a 31-month-old child in Karachi. The virus was confirmed in a child from UC Gujro in Gadap Town, Karachi East.
Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the only two countries globally where polio remains a persistent threat to the health and well-being of children.
