ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s national polio management team on Wednesday reviewed preparations for a nationwide polio vaccination campaign set to be held in April and May as the country reported six new cases in 2025 and 74 last year.
Polio is a crippling disease with no cure and multiple doses of the oral polio vaccine, along with timely completion of routine immunization for children under five, are essential to building protection against the virus.
The government has planned several nationwide immunization campaigns in 2025 to address immunity gaps after a surge in cases last year.
“Prime Minister’s focal person for Polio Eradication Ayesha Raza Farooq emphasized making the April and May campaigns more effective to stop the spread of the virus,” the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) said on Wednesday.
Pakistan Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication Ayesha Raza Farooq (center) and National Emergency Operations Center Coordinator Muhammad Anwarul Haq (left) hold review meeting at the NEOC center in Islamabad on March 25, 2025. (Handout/NEOC)
“She said no child should be left unvaccinated in the upcoming polio campaign.”
Pakistan’s polio eradication program was launched in 1994, but progress has been hindered by persistent vaccine misinformation and resistance from conservative clerics who view immunization as part of a foreign conspiracy.
Polio vaccinators have also faced targeted violence from militants in many regions of the country.
