More than 85 million children under five years old will be immunized against polio in 19 countries across West and Central Africa in a massive example of cross-border cooperation aimed at stopping a year-long polio epidemic.
Nine countries in West and Central Africa (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal and Sierra Leone) are considered to have active outbreaks of polio, that is cases within the last six months.
Though the campaign kicks off on 6 March 2010 in the nine countries, others like Benin, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Côte d'Ivoire, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea Bissau, Niger, Nigeria, and Togo and will join at a later date due to political transitions or elections.
Over 400,000 volunteers and health workers will take part in the campaign.
This complex logistical operation is largely made possible by US$ 30 million in funding by Rotary International, a major partner in the global effort to stop polio.
WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Luis Gomes Sambo, noted the synchronized campaign showed Africa's determination to be free of polio. "From the top leadership to local district administrators in every country," he said, "we are each accountable to the African child; to vaccinate every child and achieve high coverage."
Previous campaigns
A previous round of campaigns in 2009 did not stop the outbreak completely, as not enough children were vaccinated to stop polio transmission. After years with no polio cases, some countries lacked the necessary skills and experience to respond adequately to the outbreak. New approaches being introduced this year include standardized, independent monitoring of whether children have been reached, better training for vaccinators to carry out the plans fully and appropriate deployment of experienced staff.
Subscribe