KARACHI: A senior Rotary Foundation member has said that conflict, illiteracy, migration patterns and disinformation are persistent challenges to eradicating poliovirus from the country.

Aziz Memon — a member of the International PolioPlus Committee and National Chair, Pakistan Polioplus Committee — said that World Polio Day, which is being observed on Friday (today), assumed greater significance for Pakistan because it is one of the only two countries left in the world where polio still exists.

With 74 cases recorded in Pakistan in 2024, the figure has gone down to one-third this year, reflecting progress in containing the spread of the disease, he said, adding that these are primarily in high-risk districts of Sindh and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Karachi remains a critical battleground as well.

Citing conflict, illiteracy, migration patterns and disinformation as persistent challenges, Mr Memon said that the solution lies in unyielding political will, community engagement, and the unwavering efforts of organisations like Rotary.

World Polio Day today

He said the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme, supported by Rotary and GPEI partners, is one of the most extensive public health campaigns in the world. “Today, we are very close to eradicating a disease globally from our planet. When this happens, it will be only the second time in human history that a disease has been forever eliminated. The first time was when smallpox was eradicated in 1980,” he added.

He recalled that World Polio Day was first observed by Rotary International on October 24, 1985, to commemorate the birthday of Dr Jonas Salk, the scientist who developed the first effective polio vaccine in 1955.

After this, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) was established in 1988 with Rotary as a founding partner, alongside WHO, Unicef, the US CDC, and later the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, he said, adding: “Since then, Rotary has contributed more than $3 billion towards polio eradication worldwide and over $500 million in Pakistan alone. Today, 2.5bn children have been immunised against polio thanks to the cooperation of more than 200 countries and 20 million volunteers.”

Published in Dawn, October 24th, 2025