Analysis
The deputy commissioner of Pakistan’s South Waziristan Lower district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province posted an announcement of an agreement among tribal council leaders to end the polio boycott. The news comes after several local groups earlier in March called for polio boycotts amid reports that 14 districts across the country had detected poliovirus. Most of the responses to the social media post were positive.
Recommendations
Conversations around ending the boycotts do not appear to promote false narratives about polio and are mainly positive, underscoring the influence of tribal leaders in vaccination acceptance across the region. Messaging may continue to emphasize that the polio vaccine is the only way to protect children from polio and that all children should be given the polio vaccine.