Fresh polio case pushes Pakistan’s tally to 50 this year

KARACHI, Pakistan

Pakistan's polio case count for this year has reached 50 with a new case detected in the country’s northwest, health authorities announced Tuesday.

The case, confirmed by the National Emergency Operation Centre (NEOC), involves a girl from the remote Tank district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province, which borders Afghanistan.

Despite global efforts to eradicate polio, Pakistan and Afghanistan remain the only countries where the virus remains endemic.

“Tank is one of the polio-endemic districts of southern KP and has reported multiple positive environmental samples this year as well as two cases, indicating that poliovirus circulation continues to pose a threat to children,” the NEOC said in a statement.

This year, polio cases have been reported across several provinces, with 24 cases in Balochistan, 13 in Sindh, 11 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and one each in Punjab province and Islamabad, the capital. Last year, only six cases were recorded nationwide.

Pakistan continues to be under travel restrictions linked to polio imposed by the World Health Organization (WHO). Since 2014, the WHO has required all travelers from Pakistan to present a valid polio vaccination certificate before departing the country.

Polio vaccination efforts have been hampered by opposition from some militant groups, particularly in the border regions of Balochistan and in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. These groups often view the campaigns as part of a broader anti-Muslim and Western conspiracy, and many vaccinators, especially women, have received death threats.

Local media reports indicate that approximately 150 people associated with the polio drive have been killed across Pakistan since 2012.