First Lady Aseefa Bhutto Zardari has urged parents, guardians, public representatives, and community leaders to fully support the national anti polio vaccination campaign starting from December 15 to 21, 2025, across all provinces and regions of the country.
In her message, Aseefa Bhutto Zardari said that the success of the campaign depends on collective responsibility and appealed to families to ensure that every child under the age of five is administered polio drops.
She said that during the campaign, a target has been set to vaccinate 45.4 million children across the country, including 23.3 million in Punjab, 10.6 million in Sindh, 7.3 million in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and 2.66 million in Balochistan.
The First Lady said that children in Azad Kashmir, Gilgit-Baltistan, and Islamabad will also be vaccinated against polio. She added that to prevent cross border transmission of the virus, the campaign is being carried out in coordination with Afghanistan’s December polio campaign.
Aseefa Bhutto Zardari said that while remembering the struggle of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto, Pakistan’s first national anti polio campaign was launched in 1994 under her leadership, and her vision continues to guide national efforts to eradicate the disease.
She said that she has a deep personal connection to this struggle, as she remembers the moment when her mother, as prime minister, herself administered her first polio drops.
The First Lady said that this moment marked the beginning of Pakistan’s national fight against polio and shaped her lifelong commitment to this cause.
Aseefa Bhutto Zardari further said that during the three day campaign, door to door vaccination will be carried out, followed by an additional day. In high risk areas, where community based vaccination and special mobile team strategies are being adopted, a five day campaign will be conducted, including two additional days.
