World
The Resurgence of Polio in Pakistan: A Renewed Vaccination Effort
Explore the alarming resurgence of polio in Pakistan and the renewed efforts to combat this debilitating disease. Discover the challenges, vaccination initiatives, and the importance of community involvement in eradicating polio once and for all.
The Resurgence of Polio in Pakistan
For a brief moment two years ago, Pakistan appeared to be on the cusp of defeating polio, a disease that has plagued the nation for decades. As one of only two countries globally where the virus remains endemic, Pakistan celebrated a remarkable milestone when it recorded no new infections for over a year starting in 2021. This marked the longest stretch without the virus that the country had ever achieved.
However, this hard-won progress has since been reversed. Polio has made a significant comeback, extending its reach beyond traditional hotspots and infiltrating areas previously considered largely untouched by the virus. Just last week, health officials confirmed the first case of polio in the capital city, Islamabad, in 16 years. Additionally, this month, environmental monitoring efforts detected the presence of the polio virus in sewage samples from several major urban centers, including Peshawar and Karachi, Pakistan’s largest city, where millions reside in densely populated and unsanitary conditions.
Moreover, a new epicenter for the virus has emerged in Balochistan, a dry and restive province located in the southwest, hundreds of miles away from the virus’s former stronghold in the northwestern Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Province.
In response to this alarming resurgence, Pakistan has initiated a weeklong nationwide polio vaccination campaign, mobilizing an impressive 286,000 health workers — the largest public health surveillance network in the world. The goal of this campaign is to vaccinate a staggering 30 million children under the age of five. The initiative is being implemented across 115 of the country’s more than 165 districts and represents a renewed commitment by the government, backed by billions of dollars, to contain the spread of the virus.
“I am hopeful that polio will be eradicated in the coming years and months through coordinated efforts,” stated Shehbaz Sharif, the Prime Minister of Pakistan, during the campaign launch on Monday. “Polio will be driven out from the borders of Pakistan, never to return.”