PESHAWAR, Sept 3: The government has linked the promotion of political agents and district coordination officers in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas to their anti-polio performance.

This was stated by additional Fata chief secretary Dr Tashfeen Khan while briefing Prime Minister’s Special Assistant Shahnaz Wazir Ali here on Monday, according to a handout.

Dr Tashfeen said proper measures had been taken for the security of polio teams in Fata.

Fata social sector secretary Dr Aftab Akbar Durrani said oral polio vaccine had been administered to 99 per cent of the 0.65 million internally displaced persons from Bara, Tirah, Orakzai and South Waziristan Agency.

He said the continued polio campaigns had reduced polio incidence to 13 in 2012 from 74 in 2010 and 59 in 2011 and that efforts to fully eradicate the virus were in progress.

He said three immunisation campaigns had been planned to be carried out soon for which monitoring and supervisory teams had been strengthened.

According to him, secretary all programme managers having vehicles are directly involved in supervision and monitoring of polio campaigns.

“Officers from the health directorate are sent to the field during campaign days. All pre- and post-campaign activities are closely monitored at a number of levels. Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chairs every review meeting held after NIDs.

He said 3,402 polio teams were engaged and almost all Fata had been covered except the areas where ban against anti-polio vaccination had been imposed. He said steps were taken time and again to initiate a dialogue with dissidents to somehow persuade them to lift the ban.

PM’s Special Assistant Shahnaz Wazir Ali lauded the unrelenting efforts and remarkable achievements of Fata Secretariat against misery inflicting polio disease in Fata. She expressed her satisfaction over the Fata health department progress while presiding a meeting held here today in Fata Secretariat. Presentation was to update PM’s Special Assistant regarding the actions and achievements made to eradicate polio in Fata.Head of PM’s Polio Cell Dr. Altaf Bosan, Secretary Social Sector Aftab Durrani, Secretary AI &C Munir Azam, Secretary L&O Jamal Nasir, Director Health Dr. Fawad Khan and other officials from Fata Health Department attended the meeting.

Health director Dr Fawad Khan said Rs200 million had been allocated for Polio support activities in Fata annual development plan (ADP) which would allow procurement of 100 solar refrigerators for storing polio vaccines in different parts of Fata.

He said polio transit points had also been maintained to ensure vaccination of children at the border.

He said 313,689 children had been vaccinated through these transit points on the border in 2012.

Ms Shahnaz appreciated the progress made by Fata Secretariat.

She said she was very encouraged the way Fata Secretariat was managing success in conflict-hit tribal areas by finding local solution and utilising various forums.

She listened to issues and challenges faced by the secretariat over polio eradication and said they would be addressed at the earliest to make Fata polio-free.