Abu Dhabi: Etihad Airways, the national airline of the UAE, is supporting a campaign to raise awareness of the polio virus and vaccination efforts in the Pakistani community.
Through a short in-flight video, to be shown prior to arrival on all Etihad flights into Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi, the campaign aims to make Pakistanis aware of the potential risk of the polio virus to them and their families.
Pakistan is one of the few countries where the disease remains endemic.
The in-flight programme, Leap of Faith, will raise awareness of this crippling and potentially fatal disease to the many thousands of Pakistani workers returning home or visiting their families.
The vaccination campaign, which aims to reach more than 3.5 million children in Pakistan, was launched by the UAE Pakistan Assistance Programme under the directive of President His Highness Shaikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, and as part of an initiative of General Shaikh Mohammad Bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces.
This comes after Shaikh Mohammad pledged a donation of Dh440 million in April 2014 to support global efforts to eradicate polio by 2018.
James Hogan, president and CEO of Etihad, said: “By showing this engaging story on-board our flights, Etihad Airways is supporting the efforts of the UAE in helping to eradicate polio in Pakistan.”
Asif Durrani, Pakistan’s ambassador to the UAE, added: “With approximately 1.25 million expatriate Pakistanis in the UAE, this is a perfect opportunity to educate our people during their journey home and ultimately help in the overall eradication of this terrible disease in our country.”
The in-flight programme produced by Image Nation Abu Dhabi, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi Media, will be aired on all Etihad flights to Pakistan for July and August.
The airline currently operates 37 flights per week between Abu Dhabi and the Pakistani cities of Lahore, Islamabad, Peshawar and Karachi.
