Pakistan: protecting millions against polio with support from KSrelief

“Just as we care for the children in our own homes and protect them from polio, I want all innocent children in our country to be healthy and protected through polio campaigns. I do this job from my heart, going from house to house to make sure that no child is left behind,” says Faiza.

Faiza is one of more than 413,000 frontline health workers trained and mobilized by the World Health Organization (WHO) in April to protect 45 million children from paralytic polio in Pakistan, under the leadership of the Government and with support from donors like the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia – through the King Salman Humanitarian Aid and Relief Centre (KSrelief).

From 13-19 April, as the Pakistan Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) implemented its second nationwide polio vaccination campaign of 2026, polio workers like Faiza walked the length and breadth of the country to bring the life-saving polio vaccine to the doorsteps of every child, regardless of social or economic status, no matter where they live or who they are. 

Since the launch of  Pakistan’s polio programme in 1994, thanks to the medical science behind vaccines, Pakistan has reduced polio cases by 99.8%, from an estimated 20,000 in the early 1990s to 31 in 2025 and 1 case so far in 2026. Global polio eradication experts agree that ending wild polio in Pakistan and worldwide is within reach, but only if all partners intensify the response, particularly in the 2 remaining endemic countries: Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Polio worker Faiza administers polio drops in Taramari during the April 2026 national polio campaign in Pakistan. Photo credit: Hamid Inam/WHO Pakistan

Like Faiza, Saima – a former teacher – sees her work as a vaccinator as a personal commitment to protect every child in her community from a disease that can cause lifelong paralysis or death.    

“As a woman and as a mother, I get a lot of hope and internal satisfaction from this work. It is an act of service for me, vaccinating and protecting the children in my community from this terrible disease.”

Saima’s 2-member team goes from house to house, visiting approximately 250 homes during each campaign.

Polio worker Saima (centre) during the morning briefing before departing on a vaccination round in Islamabad, Pakistan, during the April 2026 national polio campaign. Photo credit: Hamid Inam/WHO Pakistan

As a founding partner of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), WHO provides technical and operational assistance to Pakistan’s PEI. WHO supports Pakistan and partners in leading key components of the largest polio operation in the world, including science- and evidence-based vaccination campaigns, support for the largest and most sensitive poliovirus surveillance network globally, the training and deployment of polio workers – 60% of them women, outbreak responses, and the monitoring and evaluation of vaccination drives.

Economic support provided by donors like KSrelief has been instrumental in ensuring WHO polio operations in Pakistan, while enabling economic support and community service.

“I am very content to be working in the Polio programme because I am able to support my family while also protecting children from polio,” says polio vaccinator Hina.

“Community health is an important part of my training as a student nurse, so I was motivated to be in the field, engaging directly with communities and promoting health. Being a polio worker and going door to door to vaccinate children is providing valuable field experience and the opportunity to serve the community, as well as income to cover my expenses,” says Waqar, who is completing his final year of nursing education and volunteers as a polio worker during vaccination campaigns.

Polio workers like Faiza, Saima, Hina and Waqar are the backbone of polio eradication efforts in Pakistan, knocking on every door and visiting every family to leave no child behind. In their vaccine carriers, they bring hope, one drop at a time, for a polio-free Pakistan and a polio-free world.

In 2026, WHO polio operations are being supported by the generous contributions of Pakistan, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Canada, Germany, the Gates Foundation and Rotary International.

Written by Suzanna Masih.

Edited by José Ignacio Martín Galán.