What happened
According to a report by Dawn, Pakistan's Ministry of National Health Services has dismantled the vaccination framework operated by Border Health Services (BHS) and halted the current vaccination process for religious pilgrims and overseas job seekers. The ministry plans to issue a fresh procurement tender for influenza and meningococcal meningitis vaccines within a month.
Key facts
- Inquiry and Arrests: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif directed a high-level inquiry into BHS, uncovering financial irregularities in a public-private partnership contract. Federal Health Minister Mustafa Kamal confirmed that BHS officials who bypassed ministry oversight have been arrested.
- Procedural Bypassing: Official documents reviewed by Dawn show BHS formed parallel procurement and grievance committees without ministry approval, ignoring the official procurement committee established earlier by the ministry.
- Cost Increases: The investigation was triggered after vaccine costs surged to roughly Rs4,500 per pilgrim, up sharply from a previous rate of around Rs1,250. Additionally, seven companies petitioned the Islamabad High Court regarding alleged bidding irregularities.
- Regulatory Issues: A health ministry official stated that Public Private Partnership Authority rules should have been applied to the contract rather than standard public procurement rules.
Why it matters
Following the dismantling of the BHS setup, the health ministry has instructed pilgrims to secure their mandatory vaccinations directly through travel agents until a replacement tender is issued. According to Dawn, past uncoordinated procurements led to fake vaccination certificates, which embarrassed the federal government and caused trouble for travellers. The upcoming tender aims to re-establish centralized federal oversight and correct vaccine pricing, which had previously exceeded the standard retail price of around Rs1,300.
Source: Dawn - Home · Published October 29, 2026 · Photo by Brett Jordan on Unsplash
