ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication (NEOC) has confirmed the country’s first wild polio virus case of 2026, and the infection is reported to have been detected in a four-year-old child from Bello Union Council in Sindh’s Sujawal District.
According to NEOC, the case was identified through Pakistan’s extensive polio surveillance network and verified by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad. Officials stressed that immediate response measures are being planned to prevent further transmission.
This wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) case underscores ongoing transmission risks in core reservoirs like Sindh, following 31 cases nationwide in 2025.
It is pertinent to mention here that Pakistan conducts 3-4 nationwide anti-polio campaigns annually, mobilizing over 400,000 workers to vaccinate 45 million children under five door-to-door.
The first 2026 drive (Feb 2-8) targeted 45+ million children across 159 districts, yet gaps allow virus persistence.
Official estimtes show the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) – backed by WHO, UNICEF, CDC, Gates Foundation, and Rotary – funds 90%+ of Pakistan’s program. Also, annual aid exceeds $100 million USD, covering vaccines, logistics, and surveillance; 2026 budgets emphasize high-risk districts like Sujawal.
Pakistan, it may be added here, remains one of only two countries in the world — alongside Afghanistan — where polio is still endemic. Despite decades of effort since the launch of the eradication programme in 1994, the challenges persist.
