Marking a fresh offensive in its long-standing battle, Pakistan began the year’s first pan-national polio immunization push on Monday. The seven-day program, spanning February 2-8, seeks to vaccinate upwards of 45 million children nationwide, the National Emergency Operations Center confirmed.
In Islamabad, Ayesha Raza Farooq, the PM’s special envoy for polio elimination, presided over the launch. Joined by UNICEF and WHO partners, she stressed during remarks: ‘This is a cornerstone effort in our top-priority mission to eradicate polio entirely.’
With polio stubbornly persistent in Pakistan, vaccination acceleration is imperative. An army of over 400,000 workers and aides will traverse communities, delivering drops and promoting hygiene to bolster immunity.
Polio’s mechanics are chilling: a virus that hijacks the nervous system for rapid paralysis. Spread through contaminated pathways, it incubates in guts before symptoms emerge—fatigue, pain, vomiting—culminating in tragedy for many.
Data underscores urgency: paralysis in 0.5% of infections, leg-focused; mortality at 5-10% via respiratory paralysis. Kids under five are prime targets, but universal vulnerability persists sans shots.
No treatment exists, but vaccines triumph. Oral polio vaccine’s simplicity pairs with injectable efficacy, both safe and adaptive to contexts, arming populations for life.
Optimism fuels this drive. Comprehensive reach promises progress, potentially expunging polio from Pakistan and accelerating the global endgame against this ancient foe.