Polio eradication programme thanks Islamic Development bank for long-standing and trusted partnership
Islamabad, 02 February 2021 — To strengthen Pakistan’s polio eradication efforts, the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) has signed a Supplemental Agreement amending the Master Murabaha Agreement with the Government of Pakistan offering financial assistance worth US$ 60 million.
The financial support will be disbursed as a 35% grant and a 65% loan, adding to the US$ 427 million the bank has already contributed to the polio programme in the country since July 2012.
In September 2019, Pakistan signed an agreement with the IsDB titled the Master Murabaha Agreement, whereby the Pakistan Polio Eradication Programme was granted a loan of US$ 100 million. The support was offered as a 90% loan and a 10% grant under the Lives and Livelihood Fund (LLF), a US$ 2.5 billion funding project of the bank and other development cooperation partners. LLF, the largest development initiative of its kind in the Middle East, serves 33 IsDB countries with the aim to raise the poorest member countries out of poverty.
The IsDB assistance supports supplemental immunization activities and the procurement of polio vaccines aimed to stop the transmission of poliovirus in Pakistan through various campaigns.
Pakistan resumed its polio eradication efforts in July after a four-month pause following the rapid escalation in cases of COVID-19 around the world. To continue with the momentum gained in past years, campaigns have resumed around the country since July 2020 under strict COVID-19 preventive measures, reaching all children under the age of 5.
In 2020, three nationwide immunization campaigns each vaccinating nearly 40 million children under the age of five and two sub-nationwide campaigns partially covering the country were conducted, in addition to targeted campaigns in particular districts at higher risk.
While acknowledging the support of IsDB, Dr. Rana Muhammad Safdar, Director General Health and Coordinator of the National Emergency Operations Centre, Polio Eradication Initiative (PEI) said, “Pakistan has benefitted from a long-standing understanding and cooperation with the Islamic Development Bank. We thank our trusted partner for their support and trust in our efforts and commitment to end polio from Pakistan. While continuing our efforts to enhance essential immunization coverages across Pakistan, the back-to-back planned immunization campaigns are imperative to save children from this crippling disease.”
In the first nationwide campaign of the year held from 11 January – 15 January 2021, around 285,000 polio frontline workers were engaged in the door-to-door drive. Special training was given to all frontline staff in maintaining strict procedures to prevent the transmission of COVID-19, such as wearing masks at all times, observing safe distance while administering vaccines and sanitizing before and after each child was administered polio drops.
Despite the challenges posed by the global pandemic, the number of reported cases in Pakistan was less than in the previous year with 84 cases reported so far in 2020 compared to 147 in 2019.
Two IsDB member countries, Pakistan and Afghanistan, are the only remaining polio-endemic countries in the world.
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Note for the Editor:
Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by poliovirus mainly affecting children under the age of five years. It invades the nervous system and can cause paralysis or even death. While there is no cure for polio, vaccination is the most effective way to protect children from this crippling disease. Each time a child under the age of five is vaccinated, their protection against the virus is increased. Repeated immunisations have protected millions of children from polio, allowing almost all countries in the world to become polio-free.
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