Islamabad (TDI): Aspirant Pakistanis must now possess a mandatory polio vaccination certificate to travel to Saudi Arabia, according to new instructions issued by the Kingdom’s civil aviation authority.
The mandatory requirement applies to travellers from Pakistan, Afghanistan, Congo, Kenya, and Mozambique and would result in legal action coupled with severe penalties for those found violating the directives.
People passing through these countries who remain in the transit area for less than twelve hours will be exempted from this requirement, Saudi Arabia’s General Authority of Civil Aviation (GACA) said.
The development comes as Pakistan remains one of the two polio-endemic nations in the world, along with Afghanistan, with as many as sixty-nine cases reported last year.
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Balochistan emerged as the worst-affected province with twenty-seven cases followed by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s twenty-one.
Sindh reported the third highest cases with 19 minors being crippled by the disease whereas one case each was registered in Punjab and Islamabad.
The Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme describes polio as a “paralysing” disease with “no cure” emphasizing that completing routine vaccination for all children under 5 gives them “strong immunity against this devastating illness”.
Anti-Polio Drives in Pakistan
The government has launched multiple vaccination campaigns as part of its efforts to wipe the virus out of the country with the last one being in December 2024 aiming to inoculate 44,000,000 children across the country.
The country’s rigorous efforts towards polio eradication face considerable challenges, especially in areas where insecurity, misinformation, and parental refusals hinder vaccination drives.
Also Read: Pakistan Reports 59 Polio Cases in 2024
With more than 60% of children affected by polio in 2024 having not received routine immunisation, health authorities established a high-level committee to improve coordination between the Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) and the Expanded Programme on Immunisation (EPI).
