ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) has made it mandatory for Umrah pilgrims from Pakistan to receive polio vaccination before traveling to the Kingdom for the spiritual pilgrimage, state broadcaster Radio Pakistan reported this week.
The development takes place amid a surge in poliovirus cases in Pakistan in recent months, with the South Asian country reporting 73 cases last year and only one this year. Polio is a paralyzing disease with no cure and to ensure immunity, health experts say it is crucial that all children under five complete the oral polio vaccine series.
According to Radio Pakistan, GACA has issued a letter directing Umrah pilgrims from Pakistan to receive polio vaccination at least four weeks before their departure and to carry the vaccination certificate with them.
“The vaccination should not be more than six months old at the time of departure,” the state broadcaster said.
The Pakistani state media said Umrah pilgrims and relevant institutions have been asked to “strictly implement” this condition to avoid offloading of pilgrims from the plane.
Pakistan has said it vaccinated over 45 million children in its first anti-polio vaccination campaign of the year conducted last week from Feb. 3-9.
Pakistan and Afghanistan are the last two countries where polio remains endemic. In the early 1990s, Pakistan reported around 20,000 cases annually but in 2018 the number dropped to eight cases.
Pakistan’s polio program began in 1994, but efforts to eradicate the virus have been hampered by vaccine misinformation, opposition from some religious hard-liners who view immunization as a foreign plot, and frequent attacks on polio vaccination teams by militant groups.
