Peshawar   -  A comprehensive briefing on the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) was held under the chairmanship of KP Advisor Health, Ihtisham Ali.

The meeting was attended by Secretary Health Adeel Shah, Director General (DG) Health Dr. Muhammad Saleem, Director EPI Dr. Arif, and other relevant officials.

During the briefing, Dr Arif provided key insights into the EPI’s achievements, highlighting that 1.2 million children are vaccinated annually against 12 vaccine-preventable diseases. Additionally, the same number of pregnant women receive tetanus vaccinations each year. These efforts have contributed to a 17% reduction in neonatal mortality in Pakistan.

Advisor Ihtisham Ali was informed that the average attendance of vaccinators has increased to 89%, and the provision of petrol, oil, and lubricants (POL) has significantly improved their attendance. Since May, there has been a steady improvement in outreach vaccination campaigns, which have now reached 53% coverage.

The briefing also highlighted that the EPI programme has allocated Rs237 million for POL in the current fiscal year, of which Rs9 million has already been released.

An Integrated Outreach Programme has been launched in the rural and remote areas of Peshawar, targeting unvaccinated and zero-dose children during weekends and evenings. This initiative includes full health teams consisting of Lady Health Visitors (LHVs), vaccinators, and social mobilisers, who travel by vehicle to ensure vaccine delivery and antenatal checkups.

To further enhance vaccination efforts, 24-hour operational vaccine houses have been established in 24 districts, significantly improving vaccination rates across the province.

From October 1st, the second round of the ‘Big Catch-Up’ will commence, focusing on vaccinating 300,000 children who missed their routine immunizations during the COVID-19 pandemic.