Pakist­an remain­s one of the only three countr­ies that still harbou­rs the virusAmong the many battles Pakistan continues to fight, its struggle with eradicating polio is becoming insurmountable. The discovery that the poliovirus has been thriving in samples collected from the Kohat region in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) is unnerving. A concerted effort is required to eliminate poliovirus entirely and this means two areas need utmost focus: one, bringing awareness to people and two, keeping terrorists away from polio health teams. On January 18th, a polio team in Quetta was fired upon and two female health workers lost their lives. We fully support the upcoming polio campaigns in K-P and urge that the drives are completed at an accelerated pace.

Source: The Express Tribune February 11, 2018 05:26 UTC