Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to polio on Thursday, urging accelerated efforts and stronger coordination between national, regional and international partners.
Chairing a meeting of the anti-political working group in Islamabad, the Prime Minister said that the government was determined to protect each child in the country from the disease. “We are committed to protecting each child in Pakistan from this paralyzing disease and making a Pakistan without polio,” he said.
Shehbaz underlined the need for complete dedication to ensure that all the children in Pakistan receive several doses of the polio vaccine. He also stressed the importance of treating both human transmission and the environmental presence of the virus.
Recognizing the progress made so far, the Prime Minister has welcomed the dedication of front-line health agents, contributions from provincial and regional governments and the role of law enforcement organizations in the support of the anti-political campaign.
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He expressed a particular gratitude to the Crown Prince and the Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia Mohammed Bin Salman for his support for the efforts of eradication of the polio of Pakistan.
He also congratulated the vital contributions of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and its global development program, led by Dr. Christopher Elias, as well as the continuous commitment of the World Health Organization, Unicef, Rotary International and KS Relief.
The meeting was informed that specific polio campaigns in the district were designed for southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to more effectively meet localized challenges. In addition to targeting new cases of polio in children, these campaigns also aim to eliminate environmental virus.
The Islamabad meeting brought together senior government officials and world health leaders, chief secretaries of the four provinces, Gilgit-Baltistan, Azad Jammu and Kashmir, and the Chief Commissioner of Islamabad also participated in the session.
Shehbaz has reiterated that the security of polio workers is an absolute priority and has ordered all stakeholders to intensify their collective efforts to completely eliminate the disease. He concluded by declaring that with a firm political will and international cooperation, the objective of a Pakistan without polio is at hand.
Earlier, a case of polio in northern Waziristan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa was reported, where a 19-month-old boy was tested positive, bringing the country’s total to 14 in 2025.
The case, confirmed by the regional reference laboratory for the eradication of polio at the National Institute of Health (NIH) Islamabad, is the eighth reported to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with others recorded in Sindh (4), Punjab (1) and Gilgit-Baltistan (1).
Pakistan has seen its highest peak in the last decade in 2019, with 147 cases nationwide, before cases dropped strongly in 2021. However, resurgence in 2024, in particular in Sindh and Baloutchistan, strengthened the call for continuous and targeted anti-political strategies.
