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I teamed up with Rotary to try to fight polio more than two decades ago, shortly after I met a mother in Karachi, Pakistan, who was struggling to carry her 11-year-old son whose legs were paralyzed due to paralysis. I was told that the virus was paralyzed in six of her children – a dangerous thing because the disease can be prevented by vaccination.
This meeting convinced me of the need to reach zero cases. In the past, wild polio was affecting more than 1,000 children each year in my country of Pakistan, and 45 countries were still prosecuting.
Today, the virus is still prevalent in Pakistan and only one country – Afghanistan. Five out of six regions in the world do not have polio. This reflects the partnership between health professionals, governments and providers around the world, as well as the partnership supported by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), which Rotary sponsored in 1988.
Getting to this point in our fight against polio was not easy. The number of cases fell over the years but increased among others where there were other problems.
Now, we are on the verge of eradicating this terrible disease but we are still facing our biggest challenge so far. That is why it is important for the GPEI to work with the global team to come to an end.
Trials against polio, as with any health program, have been plagued since COVID-19 was discovered. Vaccinated workers were properly suspended for four months last year to protect future workers, as well as communities. As a result, tens of millions of children missed their polio vaccine.
This added to the difficulties we already had. There has been a resurgence of polio in Pakistan and Afghanistan in recent years due to insecurity and parents refusing to vaccinate their children against the disease. And there has been a massive outbreak of cVDPV, a type of polio-resistant strain that harms people who are not vaccinated.
While these challenges are daunting, GPEI has shown that it can thrive despite challenges. The project was able to stem the tide of polio in several war zones and other complex areas of the world.
It will also show how polio prevention trials affect human health. During a short period of polio campaigns, the GPEI monitoring team and key personnel – including thousands of Rotary members – were The secret of the COVID-19 solution in about 50 countries. They helped track the virus, develop response plans, and disseminate important information to the public.
GPEI has recently focused its attention on three key areas, which gave me confidence that one day I can tackle the disease effectively and get help again – and teach other healthy alternatives.
First, GPEI has pledged to assist in providing the necessary medical care to meet the needs of vulnerable people.
Many of these areas, especially in other parts of Pakistan, are tired of the frequent visits from polio vaccine providers and other health professionals, which have affected the vaccine. Although the program has helped in the past to provide vaccination, medication, and health advice to women, this will also help to address the health challenges more effectively.
Second, the program has strengthened its relationship with polio-affected governments and high-risk countries and empowers local leaders to support polio vaccination and family-based interventions. In the meantime, it has been encouraging to hear the Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan’s commitment to keeping polio as a health problem in Pakistan.
And in the end, GPEI is working to expand the use of new tools that can help us fight polio. These include next-generation polio vaccines that can help combat cVDPV outbreaks, as well as digital payments to polio workers, which help improve polio vaccination activities and promote interest.
All of these tricks are part of the innovation Polio Solution Against GPEI 2022-26, and he has given us much to look forward to. But no matter how rigorous our plan, it can only succeed if governments and donors agree to the political and financial implications that GPEI needs to end polio. If they do not, polio could re-emerge in countries where it was previously abolished and reintroduce thousands of children each year – an unprecedented prospect, based on our current experience.
When governments do help to eradicate them, they are not just working for a future where no family should live in fear that their child will be paralyzed by preventable diseases. They also support infrastructure that can protect communities from health risks, as we have seen strongly with COVID-19.
The epidemic has boosted international resources, and some are considering reducing their aid to polio. While this is a difficult time, we will not be able to succeed in the fight against COVID-19 by allowing other vaccine-resistant strains to recur. Going back to fighting polio is now in danger of changing everything we have done in the last 30 years.
Rotary has promised to eradicate polio successfully and is what we want to achieve. Some should, too.
The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the editor of Al Jazeera.
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