Daily Times

Health officials on Wednesday confirmed the 22nd polio case of the year 2024, requesting parents to vaccinate their children against the crippling disease.

The latest case was reported in a 30-month-old boy from Pishin, Balochistan adding to the increasing number of children affected by polio in the province.

The Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health confirmed the presence of wild polio-virus type 1 (WPV1) in the child. This brings the total number of reported polio cases in 2024 to 22, with Balochistan accounting for 15 of them. Sindh has recorded four cases, while KP, Punjab, and Islamabad have reported one case each.

Expressing deep concern over the rising numbers, the Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication, Ms. Ayesha Raza Farooq, emphasized the critical role parents can play in safeguarding the health of their children.

Balochistan remains a particularly challenging region due to factors such as seasonal migration, population movement within and across borders, vaccine hesitancy, and security issues.

Ms Farooq stressed the need to strengthen vaccination efforts, particularly among mobile and migrant populations, and enhance the capacity of transit teams to reach all children, regardless of location.

In response to the ongoing outbreak, the government has updated its National Polio Eradication Emergency Operations Plan to target critical gaps in access, campaign quality, and vaccine acceptance.

Two large-scale, door-to-door vaccination campaigns are planned for later this year to close immunity gaps and curb the virus’s spread.