LET’S MAKE PAKISTAN POLIO FREE COUNTRY: ACTING PRESIDENT PAK

SENATE SECRETARIAT

LET’S MAKE PAKISTAN POLIO FREE COUNTRY: ACTING PRESIDENT 

Islamabad, 28^th March, 2012

   

The Acting President, Syed Nayyar Hussain Bukhari has directed Capital Development Authority and ICT administration to make Islamabad a model city for Polio Eradication and ensure that each and every child is immunized. He said that the task is challenging but not impossible

The Acting President presided over a high level meeting today at the Parliament House to review the Polio Campaign in CDA and ICT areas. He said the rising number of Polio cases in the country was a matter of grave concern and concrete steps were required to control the spread of disease and eradicate the virus by proper implementation on the Nation Emergency Action Plan for polio eradication. He underscored the need to identify the issues hampering polio campaign quality so that we may be able to achieve international standards by making the country polio free.

Syed Nayyar Hussain Bukhari emphasized for strict monitoring of the vaccination campaign that will be launched on 23^rd – 25^th April, 2012 and directed the CDA and ICT administration to cover all the rural and urban areas of the Federal Capital including population living in slums. He further directed that responsibility should be fixed in case of poor coverage.

Earlier special assistant to Prime Minister and focal person on polio eradication Ms. Shehnaz Wazir Ali expressed her gratitude to the Acting President for providing personal leadership to this important initiative. She said that 198 cases were reported last year and 15 cased have been reported so for this year. She said that a National Emergency Action Plan has been developed. She gave a detail over view of the steps taken under NEAP. Dr Azra Fazal Pechuho, Chairperson National Assembly Standing Committee on Defence and member National Task Force on polio eradication also underscored the need for a comprehensive planning to cover all areas and administer polio drops to every eligible child.

Senior Officials of the CDA and ICT administration gave detailed presentations on the overall steps taken for immunization of children in the rural and urban areas.  

           

It was informed that high risk areas have been identified and efforts were being made to cover all the areas.

The Acting President offered his all-out support to make this campaign a success.

The meeting was attended by the Secretary CADD, Chairman CDA, Chief Commissioner Islamabad, representatives of WHO, UNICEF and other donor agencies besides senior officers of the district administration and PIMS.