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Pakistan's Polio Fight: Progress or Peril?
22 Sep
Summary
- Polio cases dropped to four in 2026 from 31 last year.
- Insecurity hinders reaching over 250,000 children in southern KP.
- Boycott by security personnel threatens vaccination efforts.
Pakistan has made notable progress in its fight against polio, reporting only four cases in 2026, a sharp decline from 31 cases in the previous year. This improvement is being tested as vaccinators strive to reach over 31 million children across 115 high-risk districts.
However, insecurity remains a significant obstacle, particularly in Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where approximately 250,000 children remain unreached. Three of this year's four polio cases originated from Bannu Division in Southern KP. The survival of the virus is also indicated by positive sewage samples, highlighting the persistent threat even with low case numbers.
Adding to the challenges, Levies and Khasadar personnel in the merged districts have reportedly boycotted polio-security duties due to unresolved grievances. The government is urged to quickly resolve this dispute to ensure vaccination teams can access difficult areas.
Efforts are underway to synchronize vaccination campaigns with Afghanistan to counter cross-border virus transmission. The focus remains on reaching consistently missed children, protecting vaccination teams, strengthening routine immunization, and responding to environmental surveillance detection.
