In brief
A massive polio campaign launched by the National Emergency Operations Center will run through 8 November, covering 97 districts and mobilizing 200,000 health workers. The drive includes door‑to‑door delivery of oral polio vaccine to 24 million children under five, with the aim of achieving high coverage and coordinating efforts with neighboring Afghanistan to curb disease transmission.
On Monday, Pakistan launched a nationwide polio vaccination drive aimed at immunising roughly 24 million children younger than five years across 97 selected districts, according to the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC). The initiative is part of a coordinated effort with nearby Afghanistan to block viral transmission of the poliovirus.
The NEOC, the agency responsible for emergency public health responses, mobilised more than 200,000 frontline workers who will conduct door‑to‑door inoculations throughout this four‑day campaign, which is scheduled to conclude on November 8. This workforce includes a mix of doctors, nurses, community health volunteers, and logistics coordinators who receive rapid training and screening before being deployed to the field.
Central to the operation is the distribution of oral polio vaccine drops, a liquid formulation that children swallow to trigger immunity. Because the vaccine is given in liquid form, it can be administered quickly and without needles, making it well suited for reaching homes in hard‑to‑access rural villages.
Campaign Scope and Coverage
Geographically, the campaign covers 97 districts, a figure that represents a targeted sub‑national approach rather than a nationwide blanket rollout. The districts were chosen based on historical surveillance data indicating higher prevalence of circulating vaccine‑derived poliovirus and populations that have historically been hard to reach with routine immunisation services.
By focusing on children under five, the campaign targets the most vulnerable age group for paralytic disease. The target population of 24 million children aligns with the national goal of achieving herd immunity, which requires immunising the majority of children in the community to interrupt person‑to‑person transmission.
Operational Strategy and Logistical Coordination
The NEOC’s deployment strategy hinges on door‑to‑door outreach, a method that has proven effective in previous polio drives due to its ability to capture scattered households, especially in remote or insecure areas. Each worker group receives a uniform schedule and allocated number of households, ensuring coverage of the complete target cohort without duplication.
Logistics are coordinated through a central command hub that tracks real‑time movement of workers and vaccine stock. Replenishment units are stationed in district capitals to provide immediate restocking, and security details accompany teams in districts with ongoing conflict to protect both staff and the vaccine supply chain.
The NEOC also emphasizes that repeated vaccination doses significantly boost children's immunity. While the first dose initiates the immune response, subsequent doses reinforce it, thereby extending the protective effect against poliovirus exposure.
To complement field operations, the campaign includes a public communication burst that urges parents to ensure all eligible children receive the vaccine drops. The center’s public‑health messaging highlights the importance of cooperation between families and vaccination teams to maximise coverage.
A pivotal feature of the effort is the synchronization with a simultaneous campaign underway in Afghanistan. By aligning immunisation schedules across the border, both countries aim to suppress cross‑regional transmission, a strategy that is critical for breaking the remaining chains of infection that have persisted despite past eradication attempts.
In addition to field delivery, the NEOC has partnered with local NGOs to provide mobile health stations in areas where infrastructure is scarce. These stations serve as temporary vaccination posts, enhancing reach to children who may not be accessible through worker visits during the limited campaign window.
Following the campaign’s conclusion on November 8, the NEOC plans to conduct a rapid assessment of coverage through demographic surveillance and immunisation record audits. This data will feed back into national surveillance systems and inform subsequent rounds of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, ensuring that Pakistan’s progress toward polio freedom is measured and sustained.
