20:20
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Islamabad: National and international experts in polio eradication gathered here on Monday to develop targeted reservoir action plans to respond to what is being called “the last low season to stop polio virus transmission in Pakistan.”
“Having come this far, we need to stop, rethink, re-strategise and give polio a final push. Fata, Quetta block, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Gaddap area of Karachi remain areas of concern,” said Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho, chairperson of the President’s Oversight Committee for Polio Eradication.
“These require special strategies that are designed to cope with the ever-changing and evolving scenarios in these virus sanctuaries and out-of-the-box approaches to resolve issues that hamper progress. Disability and disease cannot be and will not be the destiny of the children of Pakistan,” she added.
Along with established poliovirus reservoirs in Balochistan, Fata, Karachi and Quetta, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is currently home to a major outbreak.
The experts agreed that the coming low transmission season from November to April would be critical for eradication efforts in Pakistan.
“The next six months are absolutely critical and could be considered the last low season we’ll have to stop transmission,” said Dr. Altaf Bosan in his overview of the polio situation in Pakistan.
“If we can reach every child multiple times, particularly in the KP and these critical reservoirs, we will be in an excellent position to eradicate polio from Pakistan,” he added.
The high-level meeting, which brings representatives from the Prime Minister’s Polio Cell, the governments of Balochistan, Fata, KP, Punjab and Sindh, as well as international partners from Unicef, WHO, Rotary and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will develop integrated plans for tackling operations, communications and accountability to have the greatest impact in the reservoirs and KP in 2013.
“Having come this far, we need to stop, rethink, re-strategise and give polio a final push. Fata, Quetta block, the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Gaddap area of Karachi remain areas of concern,” said Dr. Azra Fazal Pechuho, chairperson of the President’s Oversight Committee for Polio Eradication.
“These require special strategies that are designed to cope with the ever-changing and evolving scenarios in these virus sanctuaries and out-of-the-box approaches to resolve issues that hamper progress. Disability and disease cannot be and will not be the destiny of the children of Pakistan,” she added.
Along with established poliovirus reservoirs in Balochistan, Fata, Karachi and Quetta, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa is currently home to a major outbreak.
The experts agreed that the coming low transmission season from November to April would be critical for eradication efforts in Pakistan.
“The next six months are absolutely critical and could be considered the last low season we’ll have to stop transmission,” said Dr. Altaf Bosan in his overview of the polio situation in Pakistan.
“If we can reach every child multiple times, particularly in the KP and these critical reservoirs, we will be in an excellent position to eradicate polio from Pakistan,” he added.
The high-level meeting, which brings representatives from the Prime Minister’s Polio Cell, the governments of Balochistan, Fata, KP, Punjab and Sindh, as well as international partners from Unicef, WHO, Rotary and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, will develop integrated plans for tackling operations, communications and accountability to have the greatest impact in the reservoirs and KP in 2013.
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