By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan announced the launch of a nationwide anti-polio vaccination drive on Monday, targeting more than 45 million children under the age of 5 in a bid to curb the spread of the crippling disease amid a surge in cases this year.
The National Emergency Operations Centre revealed details of the week-long campaign, set to run from Oct. 13 to 19, as health officials confirmed two new poliovirus infections in the southern Sindh province late last month.
Those cases, reported on Sept. 29 in the Badin and Thatta districts, pushed the national tally for 2025 to 29 and brought Sindh’s count to nine, according to the National Institutes of Health.
“During the week-long campaign, more than 45 million children under the age of five will be administered oral polio vaccine (OPV) to protect them from the crippling disease,” the Associated Press of Pakistan reported, citing the emergency operations center. An additional dose of Vitamin A will be provided to bolster children’s immune systems, the center said.
More than 400,000 trained polio workers will fan out across the country to deliver the vaccines. Provincial breakdowns from the center show the scale of the effort: In Punjab, over 23 million children under 5 will be vaccinated. Sindh aims to reach more than 10.6 million, while Balochistan targets over 2.6 million. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, around 7.2 million children are slated for coverage. The capital, Islamabad, plans to vaccinate over 460,000, with more than 760,000 in Azad Jammu and Kashmir and over 280,000 in Gilgit-Baltistan.
“The NEOC has appealed to all parents and caregivers to ensure that every child under five years of age receives the polio drops during the nationwide campaign from October 13 to 19,” the report said. It also urged parents to complete the full course of routine immunizations to safeguard against polio and other preventable diseases.
Pakistan remains one of just two countries, along with neighboring Afghanistan, where polio is still endemic. Global eradication efforts have stalled here due to persistent challenges, including security threats, vaccine hesitancy and misinformation.
In 2024, the country reported at least 71 polio cases, with the virus detected in around 90 districts. Polio, a highly infectious and incurable virus, can lead to lifelong paralysis. Repeated doses of the oral vaccine during campaigns, combined with timely essential immunizations, offer the only effective defense for children under 5.
The announcement comes as Sindh’s provincial government ramps up pressure on vaccine refusers. Last week, Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said authorities were likely to take “stern action” against parents who decline polio shots for their children. Such measures could include blocking cellphone subscriber identification modules, or SIMs, and suspending national identity cards and passports, limiting access to communication and travel. He added that elected representatives, deputy commissioners and senior superintendents of police would visit resistant households to administer the drops “forcibly.”
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