Environment
Japan has announced a new grant of $4.3 million to support efforts to eradicate polio in Pakistan.
Japan has announced a new grant of $4.3 million to support efforts to eradicate polio in Pakistan. The funding will be used to purchase more than 28 million doses of polio vaccine for immunization campaigns scheduled for 2027. The Japanese government’s financial assistance is part of ongoing efforts to interrupt the transmission of the poliovirus in Pakistan and protect children from the disease. Pakistan remains one of only two countries in the world where wild poliovirus transmission continues. However, the country has recorded a significant decline in polio cases in recent years. According to official figures, Pakistan reported 74 polio cases in 2024, a number that fell to 31 in 2025. So far in 2026, eight cases have been reported, six of them in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where insecurity and access difficulties pose major challenges to reaching children with vaccines.
In view of the continued presence of the virus, the Government of Pakistan, in cooperation with international partners, has developed the National Emergency Action Plan 2026–27 under the Roadmap to Zero initiative. The plan aims to interrupt poliovirus transmission across the country by the end of 2027. During each nationwide polio campaign, the target is to vaccinate more than 45 million children under the age of five. More than 400,000 frontline health workers take part in these campaigns. Ayesha Raza Farooq, the Prime Minister’s Focal Person on Polio Eradication, described Japan’s latest grant as an important development. She said Pakistan was intensifying its efforts to eliminate the poliovirus and that Japan’s support was particularly significant at this stage. According to her, every dose of vaccine brings Pakistan closer to its goal of becoming a polio-free country.
Japan’s Ambassador to Pakistan, Shuichi Akamatsu (AKAMATSU Shuichi), said Japan had been consistently supporting Pakistan’s polio eradication efforts since 1996. He noted that the latest grant had been increased compared with the previous year, reflecting the two countries’ shared commitment to stopping poliovirus transmission. He reaffirmed Japan’s commitment to supporting Pakistan’s efforts to achieve this goal by the end of 2027. JICA Chief Representative in Pakistan Yusuke Shinozaki and UNICEF Representative in Pakistan Pernille Ironside also welcomed Japan’s assistance, stressing that ensuring access to vaccines for every child was essential to eradicating polio. It is worth noting that since 1996, Japan has provided Pakistan with more than $248 million in grants and loans for its polio eradication program through UNICEF.
