Dr. Hanan Balkhy
War, displacement, and instability are fueling the rise of preventable diseases across the Eastern Mediterranean Region. But even in the most challenging conditions, women continue to make the difference between life and death.
Women play a critical role in delivering vaccines, raising awareness in communities, and ensuring no child is left behind. From the streets of Gaza to the remote villages of Sudan and Pakistan, female health workers are overcoming extraordinary barriers to protect children from disease.
One effort in which this is undoubtedly true is in the fight against polio. Women constitute the majority of frontline health workers in many polio-affected countries. These dedicated professionals serve as vaccinators, registrars, social mobilisers, and supervisors at both team and municipality levels, working tirelessly to protect children from polio despite immense challenges.
Last week in Gaza, making the most of a fragile ceasefire, health workers pulled off a remarkable feat: vaccinating over 600,000 children against polio in just a few days, as part of an ongoing response.
Routine child immunization rates in Gaza have plummeted due to the conflict, resulting in the territory’s first polio paralysis case in over 25 years. This heroic vaccination effort was largely led by 2,900 female health workers, who make up 52% of the overall polio campaign workforce in Gaza.
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In Pakistan – one of the two remaining countries where wild polio is still endemic – women make up almost 60% of the polio health workforce. They perform essential roles – from community vaccinators to area coordinators responsible for operations in multiple frontline districts.
Pakistani women act as a critical bridge between the health system and the most vulnerable communities, accessing spaces that men cannot due to cultural and religious norms, and providing life-saving care and vital health education.
Women also play a crucial role in disease surveillance across the region, using their expertise and innovation to outpace the poliovirus. Seven of the 12 polio laboratories in the Eastern Mediterranean are led by women, demonstrating leadership in scientific and technical fields that are essential to detect, respond to and end polio.
Despite their immense contributions, women remain underrepresented in decision-making positions across the health sector. Without recognizing the contributions of female health workers, addressing their challenges, and giving them a seat at the table, we are not only failing them – we are failing the people they serve.
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As the first woman to serve as the Regional Director for the World Health Organization’s (WHO) Eastern Mediterranean Region and as a Gender Champion for the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), I am honoured to stand with and support our region’s female health workers.
Gender equity is not about token representation—it is about impact. When women hold leadership roles in health, they bring perspectives and solutions that strengthen entire systems. If we want to give children a steady start in life and to end diseases like polio once and for all, we must invest in health policies and programmes that empower women at all levels.
The Eastern Mediterranean Region faces unique challenges that make gender-responsive health strategies even more critical.
*Dr. Hanan Balkhy is the Regional Director for the Eastern Mediterranean at the World Health Organization (WHO).*
