Pakistan’s National Emergency Operations Centre for Polio Eradication (NEOC) confirmed the first wild polio case of 2026 in a four-year-old child from Bello Union Council in Sindh’s Sujawal District on Thursday.

Polio is a highly infectious and incurable disease that can cause lifelong paralysis. The only effective protection is through repeated doses of the oral polio vaccine for every child under five during each campaign, along with the timely completion of all essential immunisations.

In a press release, NEOC said the case was reported through the polio surveillance network and confirmed by the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health (NIH), Islamabad.

“The Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) is already analysing the best response to tackle and prevent further transmission,” it said.

Despite challenges, eradicating the global public threat of polio in Pakistan and worldwide is within reach, and the PEI continued to “intensify its efforts to leave no child behind”, it said.

According to NEOC, since 1994, Pakistan has reduced polio cases by 99.8 per cent, thanks to vaccines, from an estimated 20,000 cases in the early 1990s to 31 in 2025.

The country has already implemented a nationwide polio campaign this year that protected over 45 million children, with the next campaign planned for April.

In 2025, the PEI carried out five nationwide campaigns, as well as targeted rounds of oral and injectable polio vaccination and integrated activities with the national routine immunisation programme.

The centre added that while the overall trend showed a decline in polio detections compared to 2024, virus circulation persists in certain high-risk areas, including districts of Sindh and southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

These detections underscored the continued need for robust, targeted efforts to interrupt transmission and consistent vaccination for children, it pointed out.

“Polio eradication is a collective responsibility,” the statement said. “While Pakistan’s dedicated frontline workers ensure that vaccines reach every child, parents and caregivers play a crucial role by making sure their children receive all recommended doses, including routine immunisations.”

The PEI urged all parents and caregivers to ensure that their children are vaccinated during every campaign to protect them from lifelong disability or death.

It also highlighted the role of communities, religious leaders, and the media in promoting vaccination, countering misinformation, and ensuring that every child in Pakistan was protected.

Pakistan is one of the last two countries in the world, alongside Afghanistan, where polio remains endemic. 31 cases of the virus were reported over 2025.

The target for the last nationwide polio campaign was to vaccinate 45.4 million children under the age of five. However, a total of 44.6m children were vaccinated as refusals were reported from across the country.