Global donors pledge $1.9bn as Pakistan commits $154m to intensify polio eradication drive

Pakistan secured a major boost in the global fight against polio on Friday as international donors pledged $1.9 billion for eradication efforts, with the country committing $154 million of its own to intensify nationwide vaccination drives at a time when it remains one of only two states where the virus is still endemic.

As per reports, Pakistan’s commitment, announced at a high-level event in Abu Dhabi, will support expanded immunisation campaigns, improved surveillance, and strengthened emergency response mechanisms. Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, who represented Pakistan at the event, said door-to-door vaccination efforts would be intensified in high-risk districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, and Karachi.

The event brought together global health leaders and major donors, including Bill Gates, WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, and members of the UAE leadership such as Sheikh Hamdan bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Sheikha Mariam bint Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan.

Among the major international pledges, the Gates Foundation announced $1.2 billion, the Mohamed bin Zayed Foundation for Humanity committed $140 million, Rotary International pledged $450 million, Bloomberg Philanthropies committed $100 million, while Germany and the United States announced $62 million and $46 million, respectively. Japan, IFANCA, Luxembourg and several partner countries also made contributions.

Health officials said the fresh financial commitments will help Pakistan recruit and train more frontline vaccinators, improve cold-chain infrastructure, and enhance tracking of mobile and cross-border populations, particularly along the Pakistan–Afghanistan frontier, where virus transmission remains a persistent threat.

Global polio cases have declined by more than 99 per cent, but Pakistan and Afghanistan continue to report new infections, underscoring the need for sustained support. International health agencies noted that Pakistan’s success is now considered central to achieving global eradication, warning that the virus will remain a worldwide risk until transmission stops in both countries.

Polio once paralysed nearly 1,000 children every day across more than 125 countries. If eradicated, it would become only the second human disease—after smallpox—to be eliminated, potentially saving the world over $33 billion by 2100.