More than 22.1m children vaccinated in Pakistan’s anti-polio drive

“More than 22.1 million children were vaccinated during the first four days of Pakistan’s sub-national anti-polio campaign, which targets around 24 million children under five in 97 districts.”

— Editorial Team

Key points

More than 22.1 million children were vaccinated during the first four days of Pakistan’s sub-national anti-polio campaign, which targets around 24 million children under five in 97 districts.
The campaign continues until November 8 and involves more than 200,000 frontline workers.

Health|By Editorial Team|Published 3 hours ago

More than 22.1 million children have received polio drops during the first four days of Pakistan’s ongoing sub-national immunisation campaign, according to the National Emergency Operations Centre. The campaign is being conducted in 97 selected districts and is scheduled to continue until November 8.

The drive aims to vaccinate about 24 million children under the age of five. More than 200,000 frontline workers are participating in the campaign, which is part of efforts to interrupt poliovirus transmission and protect children from lifelong paralysis.

Punjab recorded the highest number of vaccinations in the first four days, with 8.535 million children receiving drops across 13 selected districts. In Sindh, more than 6.382 million children were vaccinated in 20 districts.

Khyber Pakhtunkhwa recorded more than 4.429 million vaccinations across 27 selected districts. In Balochistan, 2.008 million children were immunised in 31 selected districts during the same period.

In Islamabad, more than 450,000 children received polio drops. Around 160,000 children were vaccinated in three selected districts of Gilgit-Baltistan, while approximately 192,000 children were immunised in two selected districts of Azad Jammu and Kashmir.

The campaign is being carried out simultaneously in Pakistan and Afghanistan as part of cross-border efforts against poliovirus. Coordinated vaccination is important because population movement across the border can allow the virus to spread between communities.

The National Emergency Operations Centre said the threat of poliovirus remains present and urged parents and caregivers to ensure that every child under five receives vaccine drops during the campaign. It also advised families to keep routine immunisation schedules up to date for protection against other vaccine-preventable diseases.

Vaccination figures show operational progress, but they do not by themselves establish that every eligible child has been reached. The campaign’s final results will depend on completion of activities through November 8, including access to children in high-risk and hard-to-reach areas.