PESHAWAR, Pakistan — The drive to eradicate polio in Pakistan faced another significant setback after a new case emerged in a region previously polio-free for seven years. This development brought the country’s total polio cases to 11 for the year, despite numerous rounds of immunization campaigns aimed at tackling the virus.
In the latest case, the poliovirus was confirmed in a child from Diamer district in the Gilgit-Baltistan region, as revealed by the nation’s polio eradication initiative. Pakistan and Afghanistan are the last two countries where the wild poliovirus continues to circulate, based on reports from the World Health Organization. Additionally, there are polio outbreaks associated with the oral vaccine across 10 other countries, particularly in Africa.
The new case surfaced shortly after Pakistan concluded its third nationwide polio immunization drive for the year, with the goal of vaccinating 45 million children. Mohammed Iqbal, a leading figure in the regional polio program, mentioned that they are still investigating the transmission source of the virus detected in the child in Diamer, possibly linked to Karachi, a major southern port city.
During summer, Gilgit-Baltistan attracts numerous tourists from Karachi and other areas, creating a potential pathway for the virus’s spread. Pakistan’s polio eradication efforts have long been hampered by security challenges, as healthcare workers and accompanying police forces face attacks from militants. These extremists propagate misconceptions, claiming that the vaccination campaigns are part of a Western agenda aimed at sterilizing children.
Since the onset of these campaigns in the 1990s, over 200 healthcare workers and security personnel have lost their lives due to these targeted attacks.