Federal Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani said on Saturday that the government was spending huge funds to prevent and treat pneumonia which would help reduce mortality due to the disease.
In a message on the Third Word Pneumonia Day, the minister said that the introduction of pneumococcal vaccine is a major step and a landmark achievement in the fight against pneumonia. Health and hygiene and proper sanitation, clean drinking water, breast-feeding and other such ways, which can prevent this disease, are being highlighted through various programmes and initiatives, he added. Bijarani said pneumonia was a major global health problem but it was not without solutions and Pakistan was taking necessary action towards prevention and cure of the ailment. He said that the new vaccine would be introduced in the country early next year and for that a support worth $680 million had been secured by Pakistan from the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization. “Pneumonia is among the leading infectious killer of young people, especially children. Therefore, fighting the disease is a top priority of the government,” he said.