Pakistan launches final anti-polio vaccination drive of 2025
Campaign aims to immunize about 45 million children as polio remains endemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan, despite security challenges and ongoing progress.
Pakistan on Monday launched the final nationwide anti-polio vaccination campaign of 2025, aiming to immunize about 45 million children after more than two dozen polio cases were reported this year, officials said. The drive is the fifth national vaccination campaign Pakistan has conducted in 2025, a year marked by persistent security threats that have, at times, hampered immunization efforts.
The World Health Organization maintains that Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan are the last two places where polio remains endemic, underscoring the long global effort to eradicate the virus. Pakistan has reported 30 polio cases since January, down from 74 in the same period last year, according to the government-run Polio Eradication Initiative. Authorities say the campaign will reach children across major provinces and territories, including Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Pakistan-administered Kashmir, as well as Islamabad.
The vaccination effort is synchronized with Afghanistan to bolster regional immunity and interrupt cross-border transmission, officials noted. Health Minister Mustafa Kamal urged parents to cooperate with vaccination teams, emphasizing that the campaign is about protecting children’s futures and community safety. “This is not just about numbers. Each case threatens a child’s future and the safety of our communities,” Kamal said in a statement accompanying the rollout.
The campaign mobilizes more than 400,000 front-line health workers who will go door-to-door across the country, including in Islamabad, to ensure no child is missed. Workers operate under the protection of thousands of police officers who guard vaccination teams after intelligence reports warned of potential militant attacks targeting immunization efforts. Since the 1990s, more than 200 polio workers and police officers assigned to guard them have been killed in such attacks, underscoring the dangers faced by health personnel on the ground.
Officials say Pakistan has made significant progress in containing the virus. “We are closer than ever to achieving eradication, and this campaign represents a vital final push to stop the virus everywhere it still circulates,” the government statement noted. The campaign, they added, is designed to close gaps in immunity that could allow residual transmission to persist, especially in border areas and among mobile populations.
Analysts say the synchronized approach with Afghanistan reflects a broader strategy to address cross-border movement and a shared epidemiological landscape in the region. While the global polio eradication effort has made substantial strides in many countries, the persistence of poliovirus transmission in Pakistan and Afghanistan continues to pose a risk to nearby regions, including parts of the Middle East and South Asia. The Pakistani government has repeatedly stressed that sustained immunization, community engagement, and security measures are essential to reach every child and to prevent resurgence should transmission re-ignite. In the months ahead, public health officials will continue to monitor surveillance data, adjust outreach in high-risk districts, and coordinate with international partners to maintain momentum toward eventual eradication.