60,000 anti-polio vaccine refusals reported during campaign

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan saw more than 60,000 cases of polio vaccine refusals during the April 21-27, 2025, anti-polio campaign, citing reliable sources.

According to details, in Pakistan’s second national polio eradication campaign conducted from April 21-27, 2025, there were 60,906 cases of polio vaccine refusals.

The largest number of refusals was from Sindh, where 39,073 cases were reported, more than 37,000 of them from Karachi alone.

Balochistan also had more than 3,500 polio vaccine refusal cases. The rate of polio vaccine refusal was also reported at 0.4% in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Refusal cases of parental refusal to the anti-polio vaccine were also reported from Punjab and Islamabad. Authorities are still worried about vaccine refusal, which remains a major threat to polio eradication in the nation.

Separately, Pakistan reported another case of polio, taking the country’s case count to 13 this year.

As per sources, the National Institute of Health confirmed the most recent case from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, namely from the Ama Khel Union Council in Tank district.

What is Polio

Polio is an incapacitating disease that cannot be cured. Multiple doses of oral polio vaccine and completion of the schedule for regular vaccinations for all children under five years are necessary to give children a high level of immunity against this awful disease.

The Pakistan Polio Program organizes more than one mass vaccination drive annually, taking the vaccine to the doorstep of the children, and the Expanded Program on Immunization offers vaccination against 12 diseases of childhood for free at health facilities.

Parents must have all their children below five years vaccinated to keep them safe.