Confirmed cases of polio rise to 17 in Pakistan within the year 2025, with three fresh infections reported.
In the ongoing fight against polio in Pakistan, the country has reported a total of 17 cases in 2025. The majority of these cases have been reported from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, with North Waziristan and Lakki Marwat emerging as hotspots. A single case has been reported from Umerkot district in Sindh.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa remains the epicentre of polio transmission in 2025, with two new cases detected in North Waziristan and Lakki Marwat. Similarly, in Sindh, a child in the Umerkot district was found to be infected with the poliovirus. The continued emergence of polio cases poses a serious public health challenge.
To combat this outbreak, Pakistan launched its third nationwide anti-polio vaccination campaign in 2025, aiming to vaccinate over 45 million children under five years old from October 28 to November 3. The campaign focuses on areas where poliovirus remains rampant, such as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.
Polio workers operate door to door to administer oral polio vaccine (OPV), ensuring every eligible child receives repeated doses for effective protection. The government shows strong leadership and commitment, with the Prime Minister, the Federal Health Minister, and the Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Polio Eradication supporting the campaign efforts.
Challenges remain at the district and sub-district levels in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa due to operational difficulties and security issues. Strategies include revising micro-plans for better targeting and adapting to local conditions. Vaccination at border crossing points is implemented to mitigate risks associated with seasonal population movements and undocumented migrants returning from Afghanistan, reducing cross-border poliovirus transmission.
Collaboration continues closely between Pakistan’s polio program and international organizations such as WHO, UNICEF, IOM, and UNHCR to reinforce immunization coverage and surveillance. The focus is given to reaching zero-dose children—those who missed all routine vaccinations—and strengthening community engagement to close immunity gaps that could enable virus spread.
Health officials have urged parents to ensure their children receive polio drops during every round of the nationwide immunisation campaign. The fight against polio continues, with Pakistan's strategy relying heavily on large-scale, recurrent vaccination campaigns with door-to-door delivery, enhanced operational planning to overcome local obstacles, cross-border vaccination efforts, and strong national and international collaboration to accelerate polio eradication especially in critical provinces like Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.
In the realm of health and wellness, the index cases of polio in Pakistan in 2025 were found in the provinces of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh, with chronic diseases like polio persisting as a significant concern. The ongoing fight against polio involves not just local efforts, but also collaboration with international organizations such as WHO, UNICEF, IOM, and UNHCR, targeting Zero-dose children and emphasizing fitness and exercise by ensuring repeated doses of oral polio vaccine (OPV) are administered to children. CBD, or Cannabidiol, is not directly related to the fight against polio, but it is a compound found in cannabis plants that has been studied for its potential benefits in managing chronic diseases, including medical conditions like epilepsy.
