Over one million children miss polio vaccinations amid spike in cases in Pakistan - report

ISLAMABAD: Over one million children missed polio vaccination doses in Pakistan, according to a leading international news channel that quoted a senior official in a report on Tuesday, as the country has witnessed a major spike in cases of the paralyzing disease since the beginning of the year.

Pakistan has reported 39 new polio cases in 2024, with most cases involving children in impoverished areas due to logistical challenges, parental refusal and security threats.

Militant groups, particularly in the northwestern province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, have targeted polio workers and their security escorts, portraying these vaccination campaigns as foreign conspiracies.

According to the World Health Organization, Pakistan and Afghanistan are the only two countries where polio remains endemic, making eradication efforts in both states critical to global health.

“Ayesha Raza, the Focal Person to the Pakistani Prime Minister on Polio Eradication, blamed the recent uptick in cases on low vaccine uptake,” CNN reported. “She said about 1 million children missed their polio vaccinations in September, compounding a pre-existing immunity gap that has been growing since Covid-19 disrupted immunization efforts.”

Pakistan southwestern Balochistan province, which has experienced a major spike in separatist violence, has so far been the worst hit in terms of the number of cases.

“Most of the children recently infected with the disease had been partially vaccinated but did not complete all four required doses,” the channel said while quoting Raza.

She suspected that the number of cases could rise further as the government continues its surveillance efforts.

However, she noted that a lot of work “is being done to fill the gaps that we’ve missed in the past.”

The government is also planning another polio vaccination campaign toward the end of the month to immunize as many children as possible.