ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday reiterated his government’s resolve to eradicate polio from Pakistan, particularly in the wake of the recent floods that adversely affected the vaccination efforts.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries in the world where polio still remains endemic. The highly infectious disease caused by poliovirus mainly affects children under the age of five years. It invades the nervous system and can cause paralysis or even death. However, children can be protected from its lifelong impact via vaccination.
Most people residing in Pakistan’s conservative tribal areas consider the polio vaccination a Western campaign aimed at sterilizing the country’s population. In 2012, the local Taliban had ordered a ban on immunization against polio in Pakistan’s restive tribal districts. Dozens of polio workers have been killed in the country in the line of duty.
In conversation with the American billionaire late Monday, PM Sharif spoke about ways to eradicate the disease and thanked the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation (BMGF) for assisting Pakistan in its fight against polio.
“In a phone call last night, Bill Gates & I discussed polio eradication challenges in our flood-hit areas,” the Pakistan prime minister said on Twitter.
“Government will continue to work with Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to ensure no child remains at risk of this deadly virus. I thanked Mr.Gates for his consistent support.”
PM Sharif told Gates that the recent flooding had adversely affected the ongoing polio vaccination efforts due to large-scale displacement and the destruction of health care infrastructure, according to a statement issued by Sharif’s office.
The prime minister said the Pakistani government was actively implementing a special emergency response plan, and would continue to adapt and find ways to reach out to children in these challenging times.
Gates deeply regretted the loss of lives in the recent floods in Pakistan, acknowledged Pakistan’s efforts to eradicate polio, and reiterated his foundation’s continued support to the South Asian country in ensuring that no child was at risk of paralysis due to poliovirus.
The two figures also discussed other government-led programs, supported by the BMGF, to address malnutrition and stunting, essential immunization services, micropayment gateway RAAST, and digitization of the National Savings Programme.
PM Sharif and Gates agreed to continue working together on the shared objectives and in areas of mutual cooperation.
