Islamabad March 3 (TNS): The Japanese government has announced to give US$3.2 million in aid to the National Institute of Health in Islamabad to get equipment to fight polio.
The fund includes the procurement of up-to-date molecular biology equipment including genetic analysers, prompt PCR machines, incubators and freezers, among others, the laboratory will significantly enhance its sample processing capacity.
Federal Minister of National Health Services Saira Afzal Tarar emphasised the significance of the Japanese government’s support, and how it has been an essential element in the programme’s progress. Polio has been a looming threat to the nation. Pakistan is one of the only three countries left in the world still affected by the polio virus. Measures to eradicate the threat have been evolving at a very gradual pace. The new grant is expected to help strengthen polio surveillance through adaptation of new technology and speed up the process of polio eradication in the country.
The new equipment will be able to speed up the results reported from stool samples that it receives of people suffering from acute flaccid paralysis, in addition to samples taken from sewage in areas identified as being under the threat of polio.
buy cialis professional online www.calmandgentledentalcare.co.uk/wp-content/languages/en/cialis-professional.html no prescription
In 2017, the Regional Reference Laboratory tested 30,000 stool samples and 950 environmental samples from both Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Furthermore, the Japanese grant will be used to obtain other essential equipment required to accurately isolate and identify the threat of the wild polio virus from various samples. The grant was officially signed by the representatives of the government of Japan, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and World Health Organisation (WHO) at an event by the Ministry of National Health Services.
Ambassador of Japan to Pakistan Takashi Kurai, said, “Maintaining the strong polio surveillance system that has been established in Pakistan remains vital for the eradication of the virus. We are pleased to be a part of this honourable initiative — TNS/ APP
