Anti-polio drive: 1.83 million children miss vaccines this year

Parental refusals, security concerns among contributing factors.

ISLAMABAD:

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has said that around 1.83 million children missed polio immunisation drops this year across Pakistan.

While briefing media persons on Monday, about the polio campaign held in April 2013, WHO chief coordinator for polio eradication in Pakistan, Dr Elias Durry, said that out of the 1.83 million children, 763,714 were from KP, 621,724 from the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) and 396,925 from Balochistan.

He said that parents of 33,693 children in Sindh and 9,442 in Balochistan refused to administer polio drops.

The WHO chief coordinator said that security concerns, travel warnings, myths and misconceptions about polio vaccines also contributed to missed  target.

On the occasion, Dr Durry also presented the first “WHO Polio Award” to a polio vaccinator, Iqrar Ahmed, for his valour and commitment to the cause.

It is pertinent to mention here that Ahmed was attacked in Rawalpindi by the locals on the April 16 while performing his duty as in charge of the polio vaccination team.

“On behalf of the entire Global Polio Eradication Initiative, the WHO Pakistan thanks Ahmed for his extraordinary commitment and heroism,” Dr Durry said adding, “We have no doubt that polio will be the relic of the past in Pakistan very soon due to the commitment of the people like you.”

Published in The Express Tribune, April 30^th, 2013.