Islamabad, 10 August 2012;
President Asif Ali Zardari today reiterated his call for the active involvement of all segments of society including religious leaders, media, non-governmental organizations and civil society to eradicate Polio from the country. He especially emphasized on the involvement of Ulemas and tribal leaders for the success of anti-Polio drive in the tribal areas.
This he said while chairing a meeting to review current situation with regards to Polio in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA here at Aiwan-e-Sadr today.
Those who were present during the meeting included among other Pak’s Goodwill Ambassador for Polio Eradication Ms. Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, Governor KPK Barrister Masood Kausar, Syed Zahir Ali Shah, Health Minister KPK, Engr. Shaukatullah, Minister SAFRON, Ms. Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister and PM’s focal person on Polio Eradication, Mr. Anis ul Hasnain Musavi, Dr. Elias Durry, Senior Coordinator Polio WHO, Mr. Dennis King, Chief of Polio Unit, UNICEF, Dr. Syed Hamid Jafari, Director Global Polio Eradication Initiative Geneva, Mr. Michael Galway, Sr. Program Officer, Mr. Takatoshi Nishikata Chief Representative Japan International Cooperation Agency, Capt (R) Ghulam Dastghir Akhtar, Chief Secretary KPK, Dr. Tashfeen Ahmad, Additional Chief Secretary FATA and others. Secretary General to the President Mr. M. Salman Faruqui and Secretary to the President Malik Asif Hayat were also present.
Ms. Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister and PM’s focal person on Polio Eradication briefed the meeting about the efforts being undertaken by the Government to eradicate Polio Virus from the country. Chief Secretary KPK Capt (R) Ghulam Dastghir Akhtar and Additional Chief Secretary FATA Dr. Tashfeen Ahmad gave an overview about the latest situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and various areas of FATA.
The meeting was informed that as of today 13 cases were reported in FATA and frontier regions, 8 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 3 each in Sindh and Blaochistan and 02 in Punjab where as Gilgit-Baltistan was Polio-free. It was informed that for the corresponding period in the last year the number of cases reported in FATA were 23, KPK 6, Sindh 14, Balochistan 29, Zero in Punjab and one in Gilgit-Baltistan. It was informed that though the number of cases as of today have been significantly reduced i.e. from 73 to 29, yet it was not a satisfactory situation keeping in view the commitment being shown at the highest level. It felt that some pockets still needed to accessed for immunizing the children against this crippling disease.
Additional Chief Secretary Dr. Tashfeen Ahmed while briefing the meeting informed that among various agencies of FATA, Kurrum, Orakzai, FR Bannu were cleared where as South and North Waziristan were still inaccessible due to misconceptions about Polio vaccines propagated by the militants. He expressed the hope that with the involvement of elders, Ulemas and other influentials of the area, the situation will change and a breakthrough was expected.
The President emphasized upon the need for the same level of spirit and dedication at the UC/area level in the KPK and tribal areas as in other parts of the country. He said that all state functionaries should support the polio administration in covering the inaccessible areas. The President said that involvement of local community and especially the females was crucial for convincing the parents about the benefits of Polio vaccines and neutralizing negative propaganda and misperceptions.
The President while appreciating the assistance of the international community and organization in eradication of Polio called upon the representatives of international bodies present at the meeting to use their experience of working in various conflict zones globally for the success of Polio campaigns in inaccessible areas.
Ambassador for Polio Eradication Ms. Aseefa while appreciating the role and assistance of International bodies in eradicating Polio virus from the country, said that that the presence of Polio virus at some pockets in the country where it breeds freely was a matter of great concern. She said that there was urgent need to reach out to those high-risk pockets and to undertake every effort to eradicate this menace.
Ms. Aseefa Bhutto emphasized upon the need to take the parents on board during the vaccination campaigns and to effectively engage all the stakeholders.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
President Asif Ali Zardari today reiterated his call for the active involvement of all segments of society including religious leaders, media, non-governmental organizations and civil society to eradicate Polio from the country. He especially emphasized on the involvement of Ulemas and tribal leaders for the success of anti-Polio drive in the tribal areas.
This he said while chairing a meeting to review current situation with regards to Polio in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and FATA here at Aiwan-e-Sadr today.
Those who were present during the meeting included among other Pak’s Goodwill Ambassador for Polio Eradication Ms. Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, Governor KPK Barrister Masood Kausar, Syed Zahir Ali Shah, Health Minister KPK, Engr. Shaukatullah, Minister SAFRON, Ms. Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister and PM’s focal person on Polio Eradication, Mr. Anis ul Hasnain Musavi, Dr. Elias Durry, Senior Coordinator Polio WHO, Mr. Dennis King, Chief of Polio Unit, UNICEF, Dr. Syed Hamid Jafari, Director Global Polio Eradication Initiative Geneva, Mr. Michael Galway, Sr. Program Officer, Mr. Takatoshi Nishikata Chief Representative Japan International Cooperation Agency, Capt (R) Ghulam Dastghir Akhtar, Chief Secretary KPK, Dr. Tashfeen Ahmad, Additional Chief Secretary FATA and others. Secretary General to the President Mr. M. Salman Faruqui and Secretary to the President Malik Asif Hayat were also present.
Ms. Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Special Assistant to the Prime Minister and PM’s focal person on Polio Eradication briefed the meeting about the efforts being undertaken by the Government to eradicate Polio Virus from the country. Chief Secretary KPK Capt (R) Ghulam Dastghir Akhtar and Additional Chief Secretary FATA Dr. Tashfeen Ahmad gave an overview about the latest situation in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and various areas of FATA.
The meeting was informed that as of today 13 cases were reported in FATA and frontier regions, 8 in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 3 each in Sindh and Blaochistan and 02 in Punjab where as Gilgit-Baltistan was Polio-free. It was informed that for the corresponding period in the last year the number of cases reported in FATA were 23, KPK 6, Sindh 14, Balochistan 29, Zero in Punjab and one in Gilgit-Baltistan. It was informed that though the number of cases as of today have been significantly reduced i.e. from 73 to 29, yet it was not a satisfactory situation keeping in view the commitment being shown at the highest level. It felt that some pockets still needed to accessed for immunizing the children against this crippling disease.
Additional Chief Secretary Dr. Tashfeen Ahmed while briefing the meeting informed that among various agencies of FATA, Kurrum, Orakzai, FR Bannu were cleared where as South and North Waziristan were still inaccessible due to misconceptions about Polio vaccines propagated by the militants. He expressed the hope that with the involvement of elders, Ulemas and other influentials of the area, the situation will change and a breakthrough was expected.
The President emphasized upon the need for the same level of spirit and dedication at the UC/area level in the KPK and tribal areas as in other parts of the country. He said that all state functionaries should support the polio administration in covering the inaccessible areas. The President said that involvement of local community and especially the females was crucial for convincing the parents about the benefits of Polio vaccines and neutralizing negative propaganda and misperceptions.
The President while appreciating the assistance of the international community and organization in eradication of Polio called upon the representatives of international bodies present at the meeting to use their experience of working in various conflict zones globally for the success of Polio campaigns in inaccessible areas.
Ambassador for Polio Eradication Ms. Aseefa while appreciating the role and assistance of International bodies in eradicating Polio virus from the country, said that that the presence of Polio virus at some pockets in the country where it breeds freely was a matter of great concern. She said that there was urgent need to reach out to those high-risk pockets and to undertake every effort to eradicate this menace.
Ms. Aseefa Bhutto emphasized upon the need to take the parents on board during the vaccination campaigns and to effectively engage all the stakeholders.
0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0-0
No comments:
Post a Comment