Pakistan, in partnership with the World Health Organization, has launched the Prime Minister’s National Programme for the Elimination of Hepatitis C in Islamabad, with the goal of reaching 1.6 million people in the capital over the next six months and eventually 164 million nationwide. The initiative aims to eliminate hepatitis C as a public health threat by 2030, in line with the World Health Assembly’s global target.
Pakistan bears the world’s heaviest burden of hepatitis C, with 10 million of the estimated 50 million global cases. Each year, around 110,000 new infections occur in the country, primarily due to unsafe medical injections and blood transfusions, as well as injection drug use. The programme, led by the Ministry of National Health Services with WHO’s technical support, will focus on prevention, detection, and treatment, emphasizing safe medical practices and public awareness.
Federal Health Minister Syed Mustafa Kamal described the initiative as a paradigm shift, stressing that health is both a national security and economic issue. He highlighted that hepatitis C is curable and preventable if safe practices are followed, and underscored the importance of prevention over cure.
The programme is expected to generate significant savings over the next five years, including 1.3 billion Pakistani rupees in treatment costs and 2 billion rupees in hospitalization costs, totaling nearly US$12 million. By 2030, the return on investment is projected to be US$8 for every US$1 spent. Pilot phases in selected provinces have already provided valuable insights into operational feasibility and best practices for scaling up nationwide.
WHO Representative Dr Luo Dapeng emphasized that the programme could avert 850,000 deaths and 1.1 million new infections by 2050. He noted that while detection and treatment are essential, prevention measures such as safe injections, safe blood transfusions, harm reduction, and preventing mother‑to‑child transmission are key to ending the disease.
This initiative builds on Pakistan’s long‑standing collaboration with WHO, which has maintained a permanent presence in the country since 1960. It represents a major step toward achieving the global goal of eliminating hepatitis C as a public health threat by 2030.
