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ABOUT POLIO

What poliovirus is, how it spreads, and the toll it has taken on Pakistan across more than three decades of the eradication effort.

History & Background

Pakistan's fight against polio spans more than three decades. Use the filters to see how the case count, and its spread across the country's provinces and districts, has changed year by year.

Timeline

Key moments in Pakistan's three-decade effort to eradicate polio, from the programme's earliest days to where the fight stands today.

1994

Programme launched

Pakistan joins the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, beginning nationwide surveillance and routine immunization alongside supplementary vaccination campaigns.

2000

Cases fall sharply

A decade of sustained campaigns brings the annual case count down from the hundreds into double digits, closing in on interruption of transmission.

2014

A setback year

Insecurity and access gaps in parts of the country let the virus resurge, with the highest annual case count Pakistan had recorded in over a decade.

2015

National Emergency Action Plan

A renewed, government-led emergency plan sharpens accountability and targets the highest-risk districts directly.

2021

Historic low

Case counts drop to a single digit nationally, the closest Pakistan has come yet to interrupting wild poliovirus transmission.

2024

Renewed roadmap

A comprehensive 2024-2025 roadmap targets the remaining virus reservoirs with synchronized cross-border and outbreak-response strategies.

2026

The work continues

Surveillance, vaccination, and community engagement continue nationwide as Pakistan works toward a lasting, polio-free future.