KP launches polio drive to vaccinate 5.7 million children

Peshawar: The Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government has officially launched an anti-polio campaign on Thursday.

The anti-polio drive aims to vaccinate around 5.7 million children across the province amid security risks.

“We have developed a more organised and strategic approach this time, especially in areas where cases have recently been reported,” KP Adviser on Health Ehtesham Ali said.

He said that 13 out of the 15 cases from KP are reported in the Southern district, adding that the campaign will be conducted in tw phases.

According to data provided by the KP health department, the first phase of the immunisation campaign will last four days, beginning on September 1, and will fully cover Peshawar, Mardan, Swabi, Nowshera, and Charsadda, as well as 16 other districts, with another three districts covered partially.

The second phase, which will last three days and begin on September 15, aims to target Bannu, Bajaur, and seven districts in the Dera Ismail Khan division.

The seven-day campaign, which intends to immunize 5.7 million children, will involve 27,000 polio teams, with 40,000 security personnel assigned for their safety.

“While the world has largely eradicated polio, we are still facing challenges in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Committees have been formed to engage and convince reluctant parents, and efforts are underway to address local resistance,“ he added.

“Insecurity in certain districts has made it difficult to consistently run successful campaigns”, he noted.