Federal Secretary for Health Iftikhar Ali Shallwani has reaffirmed Pakistan’s commitment to ending polio and called for continued support and stronger global partnerships to help Pakistan reach this key milestone.
The health secretary virtually addressed a special session on polio eradication on the sidelines of 2024’s UNICEF Executive Board meeting through video conference on Thursday. The special session was aimed to shore up support for childhood vaccinations across member states and to mark 50 years of the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) which was launched globally in 1974 to combat communicable diseases through systematic mass vaccination efforts.
Highlighting the instrumental role of mass vaccinations in reducing childhood mortality and protecting millions from diseases like measles and polio, Secretary Shallwani said: “Childhood vaccination rates in Pakistan have significantly increased since the launch of EPI in 1978. Today, endemic polio is restricted to a small region in Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa with only six reported cases last year, which is a testament to our progress.”
