Islamabad —
Pakistan announced on Saturday that two children in the southern province of Sindh had been paralyzed by the poliovirus, bringing the total number of cases across the country to 39 since March, when authorities confirmed the first case.
The South Asian country of about 240 million people reported six cases of paralytic poliovirus infection in 2023 after more than a year without recording a case, but the number has risen again. .
Pakistan’s polio eradication program said on Saturday while reporting two new infections in Sindh province, “genetic sequencing of the cases is underway.” “High levels of viral transmission and rising polio cases demonstrate the toll children suffer when they miss out on immunizations.”
Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the only two countries where the deadly disease remains endemic, with at least 20 cases this year.
Pakistani authorities are preparing to launch a nationwide vaccination campaign on October 28 to immunize more than 45 million children under the age of five against the paralytic disease.
“Parents will open their doors to vaccinators during this campaign to ensure that every child in their care receives two drops of the vital oral polio vaccine to protect children from the devastating effects of polio.” It is important to do so,” the program emphasized on Saturday’s show. statement.
In 2024, 20 cases of polio have been reported in Pakistan’s southwestern Balochistan province, which borders Afghanistan, while 12 cases have been confirmed in Sindh.
Five cases of paralytic poliovirus have been reported in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which borders Afghanistan. One case each was reported in Pakistan’s most populous province, Punjab, and the capital, Islamabad.
A resurgence of poliovirus in Pakistan has been blamed on a boycott of vaccination drives by rural parents, who say the effort is part of a Western conspiracy to sterilize Muslim children. It is claimed that
Anti-state armed groups in violence-hit areas bordering Afghanistan sometimes attack vaccine recipients and their police escorts on suspicion of being government spies. The violence claimed the lives of dozens of security forces and vaccinators.
The Independent Monitoring Committee of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative said in a report last month that more than 420,000 Pakistani children will not be vaccinated in the anti-polio campaign in 2024.
The committee reported that more than 200 polio vaccination campaigns in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were boycotted last year. “It is worrying to see that violence, insecurity and boycotts remain as prevalent in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa as they were in 2023,” the report said.
The report highlighted that residents in some poor districts of Pakistan are also demanding electricity, gas supplies and road construction in exchange for immunizing their children.
A representative from Pakistan’s Ministry of Health told a World Health Organization meeting in Doha, Qatar, earlier this week that eradicating polio was the country’s “top priority” and efforts were being stepped up to stop the spread of the virus. .
“Despite the recent resurgence of infections, the unified plan with states aims to end polio transmission by 2025,” said Safi Malik. “We are focusing on high-quality campaigns, digital tracking of missed areas and strong cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan for cross-border vaccination,” he said.
