By Asma KundiZ
ISLAMABAD: Health Minister Abdul Qadir Patel on Saturday said that 20 cases of poliovirus have been reported in Pakistan in 2022.
A high-level delegation of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative met with the Minister for Health Abdul Qadir Patel. The Polio Oversight Board is the highest decision-making and monitoring body for polio eradication initiatives at the global level.
20 Poliovirus Cases Reported
During the meeting, the minister said that the government and all stakeholders are well aware of the current situation of polio and the challenges Pakistan faces. He said, “I can foresee the complete eradication of polio from Pakistan. This virus has been limited to the southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. This year, 20 children have been paralyzed by polio in the country. All these children belong to the southern districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.”
He further said that Pakistan is committed to achieving our common goals and that eradication of polio is our first priority. We will not sit peacefully until we achieve the target, said Abdul Qadir Patel.
He told the delegation, “I met the Grand Sheikh of Al-Azhar University in Egypt. On my request, a religious scholar issued a fatwa declaring polio vaccination obligatory for all Muslims.”. The health minister thanked all the members for their efforts to protect children from poliovirus worldwide.
Dr. Chris Elias, the Head of the Polio Oversight Board, WHO Regional Director Dr. Ahmed Al-Mandhari, UNICEF Regional Director George Laria-Adji, UNICEF Global Director for Polio Steven Levier, and the senior leadership of the World Health Organization Rotary and UNICEF representatives were also present at the meeting.
