• In July 2025, Pakistan’s robust environmental surveillance system collected 127 sewage samples from 87 districts. Testing at the Regional Reference Laboratory for Polio Eradication at the National Institute of Health, Islamabad, confirmed 75 sewage samples as negative and 42 as positive. Ten samples are currently being processed in the Lab. While the overall trend shows a decline in positive detections, reflecting the impact of high-quality campaigns, the virus continues to circulate in certain areas.

Results by province:

  • Balochistan: 22 negative, 1 positive
  • Khyber Pakhtunkhwa: 24 negative, 7 positive, 3 under process
  • Punjab: 15 negative, 12 positive, 4 under process
  • Sindh: 10 negative, 19 positive
  • Islamabad: 1 negative, 3 positive, 1 under process
  • AJK: 2 negative, 1 under process
  • GB: 1 negative, 1 under process
  • July data shows steady progress in containment. Balochistan reported a marked reduction, with only one positive ES site in July, down from 15 in January. 22 of the 23 sites in the province tested negative. In Quetta Block, 6 out of 7 sites tested negative. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, positive sites dropped from 14 in January to 7 in July. 24 sites in the province tested negative. Of these 7 positive sites in July, three are from South Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In Peshawar, four out of six sites tested negative. In Punjab, the number of positive sites decreased from 15 in March to 12 in July. In Sindh, the number of districts with positive detections has also declined compared to previous months, from 20 in March to 12 in July. In AJK and GB, all the tested samples so far are negative.
  • Over the past year, the Pakistan Polio Programme has conducted six high-quality vaccination campaigns, four of them nationwide, each reaching over 45 million children. These sustained efforts have significantly reduced both polio cases and positive environmental samples nationwide, demonstrating strong progress toward interrupting transmission.
  • The next sub-national polio vaccination campaign is scheduled for September 1 – 7, 2025. The campaign aims to vaccinate 28 million children across 91 districts in all provinces and regions, with the goal of rapidly boosting immunity and closing protection gaps. Parents and caregivers are urged to ensure their children receive polio drops during this round.
  • In addition to polio drops, the government provides free routine immunization for children up to 15 months of age, offering broader protection against preventable diseases. Repeated polio vaccination alongside routine immunization strengthens immunity and prevents lifelong paralysis.
  • Polio eradication is a collective responsibility. While frontline workers deliver life-saving vaccines, parents, caregivers, and communities must ensure every child receives every dose, support vaccination teams, counter misinformation, and encourage timely immunization.
  • For more information: Contact the Sehat Tahaffuz Helpline at 1166 or the Polio Helpline via WhatsApp at 0346-7776546.