National News

ISLAMABAD, (APP): Japan has approved US$ 2.98
million grant aid to help the government in its efforts to
make Pakistan a polio free country in next three years.
A formal agreement would be signed between Japanese
government and Unicef in next week to support ongoing Polio
Eradication Programme in Pakistan, Representative of Unicef in
Pakistan Ms.Angela Kearney told APP here on Thursday.
The Japanese grant would enable the Pakistan government
through Unicef to procure 16 million doses of Oral Polio
Vaccine (OPV) to conduct 10 rounds of door to door
immunizations campaigns in order to outreach and vaccinate as
many children as possible.
Appreciating dynamic leadership of Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif, she informed that due to all out efforts of the
present government, there has been a drastic decrease in polio
cases in Pakistan during the last three years.
Giving the detail, the Unicef Representative said that
306 cases of polio were reported in the year 2014.
In the year 2015, with the untiring efforts of Pakistani
health authorities, these cases were reduced to 54.
However, only five polio cases have been reported in
first two months of this year which is a great successes.
Ms. Angela said, “We have got polio virus under
pressure. We will be able to Pakistan a polio free country if
we are able to interrupt virus transmission.”
Responding to a question, she hoped that after three
years there would not be a full polio eradication campaign,
adding, but the campaign would continue in targeted area.
The Unicef Representative informed that from 1996 to
2015, the contribution to Pakistan Polio Eradication
Initiative from Japan is accumulated to US$ 153.5 million.
The Grant Aid was used for approximately 976 million
doses of vaccine (OPV) procurement by 2014.
On the quality of vaccine, she made it clear that the
vaccine being used to eradicate polio is of international
standard, adding, “We have also a comprehensive monitoring
system to ensure that quality vaccine is administered to
children.”
To yet another question, she informed that
parliamentarians and religious leaders are involved for
raising awareness.
She said, training for the vaccinators at the permanent
transit points is carried out for strengthening vaccination
activities to address Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs)
influx and mobile population from the high risk areas.