ISLAMABAD, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) -- Pakistan will vaccinate more than 45 million children during its first nationwide polio eradication campaign of 2026, scheduled to run from Feb. 2 to Feb. 8, health authorities said on Saturday.
The country's emergency operations center said the week-long campaign will be conducted across the country, with vaccination teams administering oral polio vaccine to children under the age of five.
The campaign will be held simultaneously in Pakistan and neighboring Afghanistan as part of coordinated cross-border efforts to interrupt poliovirus transmission, the center added.
More than 400,000 workers will take part in the drive, carrying out door-to-door vaccination and related activities nationwide.
The authorities urged parents to cooperate with vaccination teams to protect their children from lifelong disability caused by poliovirus, and emphasized the importance of completing routine childhood immunization alongside polio vaccination. ■