ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Caretaker Health Minister, Dr. Nadeem Jan, revealed that a staggering 90% of the poliovirus cases in the country have been “imported from Afghanistan.” This statement comes in the wake of two more positive poliovirus samples found in sewage, one in Dera Bugti, Balochistan, and another in Peshawar.
According to the National Institute of Health (NIH), the samples collected from these locations confirmed the presence of the virus, closely resembling Afghanistan’s strain. Both Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the only countries where polio is endemic. The transmission of the wild poliovirus has been limited to seven districts in the southern region of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Tank, Bannu, North Waziristan, South Waziristan Upper, South Waziristan Lower, Dera Ismail Khan, and Lakki Marwat.
A recent report by the World Health Organization (WHO) in August highlighted that all reported cases since January 2021 originated from these seven polio-endemic districts in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Vaccination Against Poliovirus
This week, Pakistan recorded a total of five cases, with new instances reported in Peshawar, Bannu, and Balochistan’s Dera Bugti. To combat the spread of the virus, the government initiated a five-day polio vaccination drive targeting approximately 44 million children nationwide. Around 350,000 polio workers are participating in this effort, administering anti-polio vaccine drops to children aged 0-5 years.
During an interview with a private news channel, the Health Minister emphasized the urgency of vaccination, warning that without comprehensive immunization efforts, the imported virus could continue to circulate and eventually become an indigenous issue.
Dr. Jan addressed efforts to curb the counterfeit medicine trade. He revealed that systems for checking medicine barcodes had been developed, although implementation challenges persisted. Dr. Jan stated that the Drug Regulatory Authority of Pakistan and the Health Department were actively involved in preventing the sale of fake medicines. Despite challenges, he assured that crackdowns against these illicit practices had commenced.
Regarding the return of former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, scheduled for October 21, Dr. Jan clarified that the matter was political and affirmed the government’s commitment to abide by the law and the Constitution in this regard.
