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Pakistan tells global watchdog polio eradication is within reach, insecurity in KP remains biggest hurdle
🇵🇰 Pakistan /Health & Science

Pakistan tells global watchdog polio eradication is within reach, insecurity in KP remains biggest hurdle

From Dawn · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Official statement Ongoing story
  • Pakistan informed the Independent Monitoring Board (IMB) that polio eradication is in a decisive phase, with the virus confined to fewer high-risk areas.
  • Persistent insecurity in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remains the primary obstacle to reaching all children with vaccination.
  • Officials highlighted a 99.8% reduction in polio cases since the 1990s, attributing progress to stronger leadership and improved vaccination campaigns.

Pakistan has told a global oversight body that it is in a decisive phase of its fight against polio, with the virus now concentrated in shrinking high-risk zones. However, officials cautioned that ongoing insecurity in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province presents the biggest hurdle to eradicating the disease.

Over the past year, virus transmission has declined significantly

— Dr. Malik Mukhtar Ahmad BharathHighlighting the progress made in reducing polio cases.

The Independent Monitoring Board (IMB), which assesses global eradication efforts, met to review progress, focusing on Pakistan and Afghanistan, the only two countries where wild poliovirus remains endemic. During a high-level meeting in Geneva, Pakistani officials presented their strategy, acknowledging that failure to eliminate transmission from remaining hotspots could jeopardize years of progress.

According to official figures, Pakistan has reduced polio cases by 99.8% since the early 1990s. Cases have fallen from 74 in 2024 to 31 in 2025, with only three reported so far in 2026. Minister of State for Health Dr. Malik Mukhtar Ahmad Bharath stated that the decline reflects stronger political leadership, improved accountability, data-driven decisions, and better vaccination campaigns. He emphasized that polio eradication is now a "whole-of-government mission."

polio eradication was now “a whole-of-government mission”

— Dr. Malik Mukhtar Ahmad BharathEmphasizing the unified national effort required for polio eradication.

Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication, Ayesha Raza Farooq, noted that the virus is no longer widespread but concentrated in difficult and insecure areas, particularly southern KP. Thousands of children there remain unreachable due to security threats. Pakistan has adopted a targeted strategy, employing smaller local vaccination teams, repeated visits to missed children, and integrating polio campaigns with routine immunization and health services.

The poliovirus footprint is narrowing, but it is now concentrated in the most difficult geographies

— Ayesha Raza FarooqDescribing the current challenge of reaching children in insecure areas.

Farooq added that the poliovirus footprint is narrowing but is now concentrated in the most challenging geographies. The program will respond with "urgency and precision" to reach every missed child. The strategy also benefits from sustained, evidence-based planning and stronger disease surveillance.

the programme would respond with “urgency and precision” to reach every missed child

— Ayesha Raza FarooqOutlining the strategy to address the remaining challenges in polio eradication.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by Dawn. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

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