ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has achieved outstanding success in eradication of polio in the country, UNICEF’s outgoing country representative in Pakistan said at a farewell ceremony on Wednesday.

“With full presence of community-based vaccinators and successful implementation of different strategies to consistently reach all children, stopping transmission looks well within reach,” she said.

She noted that LQAS and PCM results since April have shown overall high coverage of above 95 percent, and the pass rate and environmental samples have “started turning increasingly green despite the high transmission season.”

Dr Rana Safdar, who is national coordinator for the Emergency Operation Centre, said that Rawalpindi-Islamabad is another hotspot where intense efforts are underway to clear the virus from the environment.

He said that national teams and global partners are equally taking up the challenge of fighting out the virus in Karachi.

“All these areas are equally important and we cannot afford any leniency at this point in time,” he added.

“Routine immunization continues to be of critical importance,” he said, “as we head towards literally the last mile in the fight against polio. All three cases in 2017 have been zero routine immunization.

The Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication, Senator Ayesha Raza Farooq, said in her remarks that it is thanks to efforts by UNICEF that Pakistan has reached “so close to the finish line” in the fight against polio.

Pakistan continues to make strides towards the goal of WPV interruption. As of today, Pakistan has reported only 3 WPV1 cases in 2017, compared to 14 in the same time period of 2016, an almost 80 percent decline, she said.

“Angela and her entire team will be remembered for their valuable contributions towards the progress of the polio programme,” she remarked.—NNI