Peshawar, The 16th Steering Committee meeting of the Deworming Initiative was conducted at the Health Secretariat, chaired by Secretary Health Mahmood Aslam Wazir, focusing on combating intestinal worms among school-age children across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

According to Directorate General Information and PRs – Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the meeting saw participation from key departments including Planning and Development, IHP Health Department, Directorate General of Health Services, and the Elementary and Secondary Education sectors among others. Secretary Wazir emphasized the provincial government’s commitment to addressing the threat of intestinal worms with an extensive plan to administer deworming treatments to about 8.5 lakh children in the upcoming October, building on the 12 million already treated.

The initiative aims to protect more than 85 lakh children annually, including students from private and public schools and madrasas. To facilitate this, over 40,000 teachers and medical staff are mobilized each year. The meeting also outlined plans for comprehensive staff training in September to ensure the effective rollout of the deworming campaign in October.