PESHAWAR: Chief Secretary Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Shahzad Khan Bangash has said that every anti-polio campaign is an opportunity to stop virus transmission in the region by vaccinating the target children and reaching out to the vulnerable communities at their doorsteps.
He said this while inaugurating 2nd phase of the first anti-polio drive of the year here at Safwat Ghayur Children’s Hospital wherein over 3.4 million children would be inoculated against polio.
Additional Secretary Health & Coordinator Emergency Operations Center Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Abdul Basit, Deputy Commissioner Khalid Mehmood, Additional Deputy Commissioner (Relief) Imran Khan, Assistant Commissioner Ahtisham, representatives of partners’ staff and hospital administration were also present on the occasion.
Speaking to the media on the occasion, Dr Shahzad said that the province has made good progress in the battle against polio despite multiple challenges as no wild poliovirus case had been reported in the province for over 18 months now.
However, he went on to add that Peshawar and South KP, particularly Bannu and Dera Ismail Khan divisions, still presented the highest risk in the province and needed maximum focus and peak performance.
“I appeal to the parents and caregivers to support the government’s efforts in stopping WPV transmission by vaccinating their children in every anti-polio campaign,” he added. The top provincial bureaucrat said the district administrators had been directed to provide foolproof security to teams, ensure the quality campaign and bring the poor performers to the task.
He hoped that with the current level of ownership by the government, motivation and hard work of the frontline workers and support of cross segments of society, remaining challenges in polio eradication would be overcome and the last endemic region would be purged of the virus soon.
Earlier, Coordinator, EOC, Abdul Basit, informed the media that the first round of the January campaign had been successfully completed in Bannu and DI Khan divisions while the second round had now been kicked off in 19 districts of the province.
He said the 2nd phase of the January campaign will be carried out in Peshawar, Nowshera, Charsadda, Khyber, Mohmand, Mardan, Swabi, Kohat, Hangu, Karak, Orakzai, Kurram, Lower Dir, Bajaur and in union councils with Afghan refugee camps in Haripur, Mansehra, Buner, Malakand and Chitral.
Likewise, Abdul Basit said that 14,887 teams have been constituted for phase two of the January campaign out of which 13,287 are mobile, 953 fixed, 611 roaming and 36 transit teams.