Starting on Monday, a vaccination campaign aimed at immunising over 21.54 million children below the age of five against polio will commence in Sindh and Punjab, lasting for five days,
The vaccination campaign is being split into two stages as a result of the simultaneous occurrence of the seventh national census. The decision was made to ensure that both initiatives can be implemented without any negative impact on their quality and outcomes. The two stages will cover different districts, depending on the resources and locations involved.
The first phase of the vaccination campaign will cover 13 districts in Punjab, 16 districts in Sindh, and Islamabad, aiming to vaccinate over 17.41 million children.
From the third of next month, the second phase of the vaccination campaign will take place to immunize over 4.12 million children in 12 districts of Balochistan and 26 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Polio is still endemic in only two countries worldwide, which are Pakistan and Afghanistan. Despite efforts to eradicate the disease through vaccination campaigns, cases of polio continue to be reported in Pakistan.
The challenges to eradicating polio in Pakistan include issues such as security concerns in certain areas, lack of access to remote areas, low vaccination coverage in certain communities, and misinformation and misconceptions about the vaccine.
Abdul Qadir Patel, the Minister for Health Services, has appealed to parents and caregivers to make sure that their children receive the polio vaccine to protect them from the poliovirus. He emphasized the importance of vaccinating children during the ongoing anti-polio campaign to eradicate the disease from Pakistan.
The Sehat Tahaffuz Helpline will be operational during the anti-polio campaign to help parents and caregivers report any missed children and receive relevant information regarding the vaccination.
These helplines are available to provide assistance and support to ensure that all children are vaccinated and protected against polio.
The government, along with international organizations and partners, is working to overcome these challenges and intensify efforts to vaccinate every child and eradicate polio from Pakistan. The ongoing anti-polio campaigns, such as the one mentioned above are a key part of these efforts.
