ISLAMABAD: Emphasising persistent risk of a polio outbreak in Pakistan, theWorld Health Organisation (WHO) extended travel restrictions on the countryfor another three months.
The decision was taken during a session of International HealthRegulations’ (2005) Emergency Committee – responsible for assessing globalpoliovirus spread – convened by the World Health Organisation (WHO).
The committee expressed concerns over Pakistan’s efforts to reach a largenumber of children through its polio eradication campaign. It alsohighlighted the gaps in Pakistan and Afghanistan’s efforts to eliminatepolio.
It emphasised that recent favorable environmental samples from Peshawar andKarachi underscore the persistent risk of a polio outbreak in Pakistan.
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The committee highlighted that a new case of Wild Poliovirus Type 1 (WP1)emerged in Pakistan since the last meeting, bringing the 2023 total to twocases. Both instances occurred in the Bannu district of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa(KP) province.
