The World Health Organization (WHO) has decided to maintain travel restrictions on Pakistan, extending the conditional global travel restrictions imposed on the country for another three months.
WHO said that Pakistan’s polio related surveillance will continue for another three months, while polio vaccination will be mandatory for those traveling abroad. WHO will review Pakistan’s anti polio measures after three months. It is worth recalling that travel restrictions were imposed on Pakistan in May 2014 due to polio.
The WHO Emergency Committee on Polio had recommended extending the restrictions on Pakistan. The committee’s 44th meeting was held on January 14, in which officials from polio affected countries participated through video link, and the global spread of the polio virus was discussed.
In the meeting communiqué, WHO said that the committee reviewed the polio situation in Pakistan and the steps taken by the government, and observed that Pakistan and Afghanistan remain a risk for the global spread of the polio virus and both countries are responsible for its international transmission.
According to WHO, Pakistan and Afghanistan also pose a risk to each other regarding polio. The spread of the wild polio virus (WPV1) in these countries is a matter of concern. The communiqué stated that globally the virus is limited to Pakistan and Afghanistan, and cross border movement between the two countries is a major source of its spread. However, WHO said that the transmission of polio across the Pakistan Afghanistan border decreased in 2025.
According to WHO, polio has been detected in sewage samples from all four provinces of Pakistan, while the transmission between Pakistan and Afghanistan continues from the Quetta block and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Last year 31 polio cases were reported in Pakistan, and 608 sewage samples tested positive. The spread of the polio virus in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is also continuing, while no case of wild polio virus type 1 was reported from Karachi in 2025.
WHO expressed satisfaction over Pakistan’s anti polio efforts and appreciated the quality and coverage rate of the polio campaign, expressing confidence in it. It said that effective polio campaigns are ongoing at provincial and regional levels in Pakistan, however effective campaigns have not been carried out in districts along the Pakistan Afghanistan border, and there is a need to improve polio campaigns in the Quetta block and southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
According to WHO, there is a challenge in reaching all children in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 250,000 children remain deprived of the polio vaccine where the security situation for campaigns is not favorable.
WHO also expressed concern over the continued presence of wild polio virus in Karachi, saying that the data of polio campaigns in Karachi is not reliable and the number of unvaccinated children is higher than the government data.
Pakistan should implement the recommendations of the TAG to stop the spread of polio. Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Quetta block are sensitive areas regarding polio, while WPV1 is spreading in central areas, southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the Quetta block. Pakistan must ensure effective campaigns in polio sensitive areas and emergency measures are needed to stop the spread of polio in both neighboring countries, while reaching every child is essential.
WHO said in the communiqué that Pakistan and Afghanistan must conduct high quality polio campaigns during the low transmission season and both countries will have to work together, while promoting Pakistan Afghanistan mutual cooperation is essential.
