Pakistan’s National Task Force reviews ongoing polio eradication strategies as authorities launch a major vaccination drive targeting over 31 million children across high-risk districts, aiming to curb persistent virus transmission.
Pakistan’s National Task Force for Polio Eradication has reviewed the country’s latest push to eliminate the virus, as authorities prepare to begin a new vaccination drive targeting more than 31 million children under five in 115 districts from 21 to 27 September. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal chaired the meeting in Islamabad and formally launched the campaign by giving polio drops to children before the session began.
Officials said the exercise comes at a critical moment for Pakistan, which has seen progress but still faces stubborn transmission in high-risk pockets. Ayesha Raza Farooq, the Prime Minister’s focal person on polio eradication, told the task force that the next phase would depend on tighter surveillance, stronger campaign quality and deeper engagement with parents and local communities. Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal urged chief secretaries to stay closely involved, particularly in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, which remains the country’s most difficult area for access and service delivery.
The Pakistan Polio Eradication Initiative said more than 273,000 frontline workers have been mobilised for the September campaign, with door-to-door teams tasked with reaching every eligible child. The drive will be carried out in coordination with partners and is synchronised with Afghanistan, a step aimed at reducing cross-border virus circulation.
Pakistan’s latest effort follows a series of large-scale campaigns this year. The initiative said it vaccinated more than 44.8 million children in April, and about 19 million in a May campaign across 79 high-risk districts. Officials have also said the virus is increasingly confined to southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while environmental detections in Karachi and Quetta continue to signal that polio remains a threat.
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