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UAE determined to eradicate polio from Pakistan, says envoy

By Muhammad Saleh Zaafir
December 14, 2019

ISLAMABAD: The United Arab Emirates (UAE) Ambassador Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi has vowed that UAE government is determined to eradicate polio from Pakistan entirely through its polio initiative in Pakistan called the Emirates Polio Campaign by the year 2022 implemented by UAE-Pakistan Assistance Programme (UAEPAP). It was started in 2010 and covers important development sectors such as education, infrastructure, safe drinking water, healthcare and polio eradication.

In a statement issued here on Friday Ambassador Hamad Al-Zaabi maintained that the UAE has played a major role in eradicating polio by actively contributing to the financing and support of critical vaccination campaigns. As a result of the initiatives, millions of children globally have received the necessary vaccines to prevent the spread of polio, as 418,956,226 drops of polio vaccines were delivered to Pakistani children from 2014 and up until September 2019 in different areas of KPK, FATA and Balochistan.

“The wise leadership of UAE is committed to pay an active role for human development on regional and global level, UAEPAP which comes in implementation of the directives of Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the UAE, and within the initiative of Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of UAE Armed Forces to eradicate polio in the world, where Since 2011 President Khalifa has provided $167 million in contributions to support global efforts to eradicate polio, with a special focus on Pakistan and Afghanistan,” Ambassador Hamad Obaid Ibrahim Salem Al-Zaabi added.

The UAE envoy who took personal interest in the activities for wellbeing of the host country ever-since he assumed the office, has reminded that since 2014 till 2019, the number of cases reduced significantly due to the efforts of Emirates Polio Campaign and other partners helping the government of Pakistan.