Islamabad: Authorities in Pakistan reported another polio case in Balochistan as the country's tally of the crippling disease cases this year climbed to 22, a setback to the government's efforts to eradicate the virus.
The latest victim of the disease was a 30-month-old boy from Pishin in Balochistan, officials said.
Officials said the regional reference laboratory for polio eradication at the National Institute of Health on Wednesday confirmed the presence of wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) in the child, bringing the total number of reported cases so far this year to 22, with Balochistan alone accounting for 15 of them.
"Sindh has reported four cases while Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and Islamabad reported one case each,” a lab official said.
Expressing deep concern over the rising number of polio cases in Pakistan, the Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication, Ayesha Raza Farooq, emphasised the critical role parents play in safeguarding the health of their children.
“Each case represents a child whose life has been tragically and unnecessarily affected by polio. The only solution is timely and repeated vaccination. Every new case is a tragic reminder that we have all failed our children. I urge all parents to take responsibility and ensure their children receive the polio vaccine to fight against it,” she said.
The government in response to the current outbreak updated its National Polio Eradication Emergency Operations Plan to target critical gaps in access, campaign quality, and vaccine acceptance, according to a government statement.
Two large-scale door-to-door vaccination campaigns are planned for later this year to close immunity gaps and curb the spread of the virus, the statement said.
National Coordinator for the Polio Emergency Operations Centre Muhammad Anwarul Haq, highlighting the importance of maintaining high vaccination coverage, said: “Every new case is a tragic reminder of what happens when there are gaps in immunity.”
“When a child misses’ vaccination, the virus wins. Let’s work together to protect our children and importantly to put a stop to the virus,” Dawn News quoted Haq as saying.