TAG chairperson says end to disease is imminent

Advises local vaccinators be retained to see campaign through

PESHAWAR: Polio Eradication’s Technical Advisory Group (TAG) Chairperson Jean Marc Olive said authorities are ever closer to eliminating the crippling virus from the region.

He acknowledged recent successes in polio eradication efforts in Federally Administered Tribal Areas and advised retention of local vaccinators to see the work through.

He stated workers should be rewarded for good performance and women should be encouraged to participate in the campaigns. He believed this could build confidence and trust among communities.

Olive stated this during a meeting held at Emergency Operations Cell at FATA Secretariat  on Sunday.



The fifth round of the low transmission season campaign started with a three-day drive to administer polio drops to children in Fata and Frontier Regions.

The campaign will be followed by drives to vaccinate those children who were missed initially.

Officials said 965,633 children below the age of five will be vaccinated by a total 3,078 teams. Of the total, 2,718 are mobile, 270 fixed and 90 are transit teams.

Security will be provided by paramilitary and military forces, while political agents and other officials will take on supervisory roles.

High-risk areas include Jamrud and Bara tehsils of Khyber Agency, North and South Waziristan agencies as well as Baka Khel, Jani Khel, Hindi Khel and Sintanga areas of FR Bannu.

Officials said more than 99% of the target was achieved as only 0.3% of the children were missed during the campaign held in April. Only 32 refusals were recorded.

The average percentage of target children covered during the last four polio campaigns in the low transmission season was 98% and refusal was below 1%.

In 2015, only 16 polio cases were detected in Fata and the FRs, whereas no cases have emerged from there in the current year.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16^th, 2016.