Peshawar, Pakistan – Despite mounting violence and enduring public mistrust, dedicated health workers in Pakistan are pressing on with a critical door-to-door vaccination campaign to eliminate polio, a disease that remains endemic in only two countries: Pakistan and Afghanistan. Cases have surged in Pakistan, with 45 new infections recorded so far in 2024, compared to just six last year, underscoring the importance of ongoing vaccination efforts.
The campaign’s frontline workers face extreme risks, especially in rural areas where suspicions about the vaccine linger. Many parents, misled by misinformation, initially refused the vaccine, believing it to be part of a “Western ploy.” This mistrust was exacerbated in 2011 when a CIA-led fake vaccination drive in Pakistan sought to track Osama bin Laden, creating lasting skepticism about the polio vaccine’s true purpose. More recently, militant groups have targeted health workers and their armed escorts, with deadly attacks resulting in multiple deaths in the past weeks alone.
“When we hear that a polio vaccination team has been attacked, it deeply saddens us,” said Zainab Sultan, a health worker in Panam Dehri, on the outskirts of Peshawar. “Our responsibility now is to continue our work, to protect people from disability, to vaccinate children, and to make them healthy members of society.”
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To combat misinformation, religious leaders are stepping forward to reassure communities about the vaccine’s safety, emphasizing that it does not contravene Islamic beliefs. “All major religious schools and scholars in Pakistan have debunked the rumours surrounding the polio vaccine,” said Imam Tayyab Qureshi of Peshawar. Such endorsements have been pivotal in persuading skeptical parents, like Zulfiqar, a resident of Panam Dehri, who finally agreed to vaccinate his children after his local imam explained the vaccine’s safety and necessity.
Community resistance also stems from frustrations with local infrastructure, with some impoverished communities using vaccination as leverage to negotiate for water and road improvements. Ayesha Raza, spokesperson for the government’s polio eradication campaign, urged parents to prioritize health, saying, “Your demands may be very justified, but don’t link it to your children’s health.”
The campaign has also drawn those personally affected by polio, like Ismail Shah, a polio survivor who now hobbles from door to door, encouraging families to vaccinate their children. “I decided in my childhood that when I grew up, I would fight against the disease that disabled me,” said Shah, now 35. As one of 400,000 volunteers, Shah has made significant strides, reducing the number of vaccine refusals in his area from over 1,000 to fewer than 100.
Pakistan’s polio eradication efforts continue to face serious challenges, but with committed health workers and support from religious leaders, the hope remains to finally eliminate the virus and protect the next generation from preventable paralysis.
