00:00When Sadia Suleimani was a young child, a day spent playing in the mud led to tragedy.
00:10I had a fever for 21 days. The doctor gave me an injection and my leg was affected.
00:18I was injected at night and in the morning my legs were not good. I couldn't even touch the floor.
00:24At five years old she contracted polio, an incurable virus which mainly affects kids and can cause paralysis.
00:34Sadia had to relearn to walk and needs crutches to get around.
00:38Now she's on the front line to prevent other children from contracting polio.
00:43But in Pakistan there's hesitancy.
00:48They have doubts over the contents of the vaccine. They doubt that no one has seen it be manufactured or where it came from to get here.
00:56I tell parents that refuse, you're committing an atrocity on your children.
01:01My parents and I think, had there been a vaccination campaign in my time, I would not have been helpless.
01:08Pakistan is one of only two countries where polio is yet to be eradicated.
01:14In 2023 it was on the brink of being polio free but within a year cases skyrocketed.
01:21Six have already been recorded since January despite mass vaccination campaigns.
01:27Some experts are calling for a rethink.
01:30I think the main strategy has to be to improve the routine immunisation that every child born should be registered.
01:39He should get all the vaccines before he's two years old.
01:44Billions of dollars have already been spent trying to eradicate polio in Pakistan.
01:49But efforts have been hindered by geography, public mistrust and security concerns.
01:55Polio is not just a problem here in Pakistan.
01:58The disease is still endemic in neighbouring Afghanistan and the porous border makes it difficult to keep cases contained.
02:07Senior officials at the WHO warn US funding cuts to foreign aid could have a devastating impact on Pakistan and Afghanistan's polio eradication programs.
02:17Global eradication efforts will lose $210 million this year.
02:22But officials in Pakistan aren't concerned.
02:25There is not much effect of this thing to our operational as we are doing already and we are committed and the government is committed.
02:38Despite some vaccine resistance in communities like hers, Sadia is hopeful soon Pakistan will be declared polio free.
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