ISLAMABAD: Ambassador Nicolas Galey of France on Wednesday hosted a reception in honour of the Polio Oversight Board (the highest decision-making body of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative) which is currently on visit to Pakistan and assured his country’s full support in eradicating poliovirus from Pakistan. The reception was attended almost all the noteworthy figures, national and international, which have been making joint efforts to eradicate poliovirus from Pakistan, one of the last two countries where this menace persists, the other country being Afghanistan.
Among the guests included Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication Ayesha Raza Farooq; Federal Secretary Health, Dr Kazim Niaz; National Coordinator of the National Emergency Operations Center (NEOC) for the Pakistan Polio Eradication Initiative, Capt (R) Anwarul Haq, the POB’s members including Chairman of the Polio Oversight Board and President of Global Development at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr Chris Elias; Regional Director for WHO Eastern Mediterranean, Dr Hanan Balkhy; Regional Director for UNICEF South Asia Mr Sanjay Wijesekera; MD King Salman Humanitarian & Relief Centre Prof Ziad A Memish, Director Health and Environment Aid, KS Relief Dr Abdullah al-Sabah, Rotary International Trustee and Chairman of the National Polio Plus Committee Aziz Memon, representatives from the US Centres for Disease Control.
In his welcome address, Ambassador Nicolas said the POB visit to Pakistan and Afghanistan was important in the backdrop of the accelerated efforts to eradicate polio virus from these two remaining countries in the world where poliovirus is posing a potential threat.
Such visits, said the ambassador were essential for all the international partners to monitor the situation on the ground and to address it objectively. He also praised the political support and commitment by the Pakistani authorities in significantly launching anti-poliovirus drive countrywide.
Speaking on the occasion, Prime Minister’s Coordinator on Health Dr Mukhtar Bharath said Pakistan was firmly committed to eradicating poliovirus and its polio workers and security officials have lost their lives during the door-to-door campaigns for administrating anti-poliovirus drops to children.
Dr Mukhtar Bharath said the polio eradication team right from Prime Minister’s Focal Person for Polio Eradication Ayesha Raza Farooq, National Coordinator Capt (R) Anwarul Haq, to an ordinary polio worker is doing great work and taking the programme forward with new courage, he said.
They have the full support and backing of Prime Minister’s Office and we are resolved to eradicate poliovirus from the country, the PM’s top aide on health reiterated.
Chairman of the POB and President of Global Development at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Dr Chris Elias in his brief remarks on the occasion said Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif earlier in the day while chairing a high-level meeting had assured that the GoP was leading from the front in this final push for polio eradication.
This is the final stage of the polio eradication campaign, he said and hoped it would yield the desired results. We look forward to working with Dr Mukhtar, Ayesha Farooq and their team which is a strong, committed team and have contributed significantly, said Chris.
It may be mentioned here that Pakistan has recorded a disturbing number of 50 polio cases so far prompting the international partners, donors and officials to hold emergency meetings with the Pakistani officials to re-evaluate their strategy. Ayesha Raza Farooq also briefed the POB about various efforts on the part of the government to synchronize and coordinate efforts against the virus and eradicate it permanently.
Agence Francaise Development (AFD) is supporting the global effort to eradicate poliovirus in Pakistan by extending US$55 million concessional loan which comprises a US$20 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
