ISLAMABAD: Pakistan will launch its final nationwide polio vaccination campaign for 2025 from tomorrow, aiming to immunize more than 45 million children under the age of five, health authorities said on Sunday, as the country remains at the center of global efforts to eradicate the disease.
Global polio tracking data shows that 30 of the 39 confirmed wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases worldwide 2025 were reported in Pakistan, with the remainder in neighboring Afghanistan.
Pakistan recorded 74 polio cases in 2024, a sharp increase from six cases in 2023 and just one case in 2021, highlighting the volatility of eradication efforts in a country where misinformation, vaccine hesitancy and security issues have repeatedly disrupted progress.
“The final national polio campaign of 2025 will formally begin across the country from tomorrow,” Pakistan’s National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) said in a statement.
“During the campaign, polio drops will be administered to more than 45 million children nationwide,” it said, adding that the seven-day drive would run from Dec. 15 to Dec. 21.
