Pakistan has confirmed its eighth polio case of 2026, a 13-month-old girl from Union Council Janbaz-B in Tehsil Bara, Khyber District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The National Emergency Operations Centre confirmed the case as a subnational vaccination campaign covering nearly 24 million children gets under way.

This is the second case reported from Khyber District this year and the sixth from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, underscoring that transmission remains concentrated in the province. Two of the eight cases this year have been reported from Sindh. Health officials have launched a full case investigation and say the response will be guided by scientific analysis, including targeted vaccination work and support to strengthen routine immunisation.

The campaign running from 2 November

The subnational campaign runs from 2 to 8 November across 97 districts, targeting nearly 24 million children under the age of five, with more than 200,000 frontline workers mobilised. Parents are being urged to make sure every child under five receives the oral polio vaccine during this round and in subsequent campaigns.

Four large campaigns already held this year

Pakistan has already carried out four large-scale polio campaigns in 2026, protecting more than 45 million children multiple times, alongside smaller targeted rounds using oral and injectable vaccines in high-risk areas, including the Peshawar Block. A subnational campaign in September protected over 29.3 million children.

Officials stress that no child will be safe from polio until children are consistently vaccinated across the country, and that the November round is part of that continuing effort rather than a one-off response to a single case. Sources: Islamabad Post and The News Lark.