Dr Alvi said that Pakistan is facing myriad challenges regarding polio eradication, which is a question not only of national pride but also national security, and there is no room for complacency, he added. He further said, "We must work collectively to overcome community resistance, build awareness and risk perception of the virus, and to build stronger healthcare systems across Pakistan to eradicate Polio from the country."
He expressed his strong belief that Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme has developed exceptional national expertise, knowledge and systems to beat the virus and to inspire communities and parents to safeguard their children. He underscored that polio eradication is one of the government's top priorities and it is taking all the steps required for elimination of polio from the country.
The PMFP gave a detailed presentation on the current situation of the polio cases in the country and the measures being undertaken for complete eradication of the menace. He informed the meeting that keeping in view the significant rise in number of the polio cases in the country, the government in collaboration with all the provinces has doubled its efforts to curb the spread of the fatal virus. He further briefed the meeting that all the stakeholders are engaged including religious scholars to persuade the people to willingly administer the polio drop to the children and support the polio vaccination campaign, especially in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
The President commended the efforts of the polio eradication team, including all the health partners in eradicating this fatal disease and emphasized that the role of Council of Islamic Ideology and mosques must be incorporated in all their future endeavors to overcome large-scale community mistrust and educate the masses, particularly the potential reservoirs, which are giving birth to this fatal disease. He also conveyed his resolve to continue his support for tackling the remaining challenges to reach this goal.
He underlined the need for effective use of social media as well as cable TV to make people aware about the consequences of this fatal disease. He also urged all the stakeholders to involve the political representatives of the respective areas, where the cases are mostly reported, to play their role in convincing the people for administering polio drops to the children.-PR