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21 December
 European Commission provides
US$ 29 million for Immunization Plus
Days in Nigeria, in addition to Ethiopia contributions
Model based on additional health interventions and community engagement has proven effective
On 20 November, the European Commission signed an agreement to provide US$ 28.8 million (€20 million) for Immunization Plus Days (IPDs)
in Nigeria for March 2006 - September 2008. This brings the EC's polio contributions in Nigeria to more than US$ 95 million.
The EC's contributions for global polio eradication
now total more than US$ 192 million. This includes US$16 million (€13.1
million) to support polio eradication outbreak response activities in Ethiopia
from October 2006 to September 2007. This contribution was used for operations
costs for two National Immunization Days (NIDs) targeting 15.1 million children
under the age of five years as well as mop-up activities. Two NIDs were held in
June and October 2007, and thanks in part to the support of the EC Delegation in
Ethiopia, the country has been polio-free for more than one year.
The funds for Nigeria are being used for operations costs, which have increased by 60% with the introduction of IPDs. Introducing other health interventions – such as bed nets or de-worming tablets – in addition to polio vaccine, the IPDs also integrate community participation and have led to increased awareness among families and greater coverage of children.
Between 2006 and 2007, the proportion of children in the endemic parts of Nigeria who had never received a dose of oral polio vaccine had fallen by nearly 50%. While there are still too many children being missed in some highest-risk areas, this progress has brought the largest single-year drop in polio in Nigeria, a 77% decline in cases and a 89% decline in type 1 polio alone (the more paralytic of the two types of poliovirus surviving, type 1 is the current priority target of global polio eradication). For the first time in five years, Nigeria does not lead the world in polio cases.
20
December
WHO
Director-General applauds India's progress and dedication
Type
1 polio cut nearly 90%
On
her third visit to an endemic country this year, Dr Margaret Chan met with India's Prime Minister and noted that the country had cut type 1 polio by nearly 90%
and that the key to global polio eradication lay in northern India. Type 1 is the more paralytic of the two remaining poliovirus serotypes,
spreads more easily and caused India's large outbreak in 2006.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh pledged to continue his country's exemplary
financial and political commitment until polio is stopped. Dr Chan also met the
Chief Ministers of Bihar and Uttar Pradesh, the two remaining endemic states of India, and discussed with them the remarkable progress made against type 1 polio and
specific strategies to interrupt the last reservoirs of the virus.
(Photo
courtesy Government of India)
Chief Minister Mayawati
Kumari of Uttar Pradesh told Dr Chan that her Government had accorded top
priority to polio eradication and included the programme in regular reviews for
the first time. In Bihar, Chief Minister Nitish Kumar discussed with Dr Chan strategies to vaccinate
children who were on the move or live in remote and hard-to-reach parts of the
state.
Dr Margaret
Chan giving polio vaccine at a community
health centre in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.
(Photo WHO/India)
19 December
Millions
of pilgrims converge on Mecca, at low risk of polio thanks to Saudi health regulations
Millions
of Muslim pilgrims have arrived in Mecca for the annual Hajj this week, many protected for the first time against polio.
To minimize the risk of polio spreading during or from the 2 million-person
gathering, the Saudi authorities have for the second year running instituted
polio vaccination requirements for the Hajj, along with other measures of
infectious disease control.
 The
Hajj is the largest annual gathering of people in the world and performing the
pilgrimage is one of holiest duties of Muslims; the multinational, crowded
nature of the Hajj makes it just right for the spread of poliovirus. Saudi
Arabia
is considered the guardian of the holy sites and as such responsible for the
safety and health of pilgrims. Vaccination requirements are an effective way of
ensuring that pilgrims are protected and – perhaps more importantly – that
when they return to their countries, they do not inadvertently infect children
on their journey or at home.
This
year, pilgrims of all ages from polio-endemic countries Afghanistan,
India, Nigeria
and
Pakistan were required by Saudi Arabian authorities to receive a dose of oral polio
(OPV) vaccine before travelling to the kingdom.
A
pilgrim taking oral polio vaccine in
Pakistan
before travelling to Mecca
(Photo:
T. Moran/WHO)
Pilgrims from Sudan were also required to receive a dose of vaccine. Although
Sudan itself has reported only one case this year (as of 11 December), the country is
close to infected areas and hosts a large number of pilgrims in transit to and
from the Hajj.
 Children
less than 15 years old travelling from countries with ongoing or recent
transmission – including Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Niger –
were required to show proof of vaccination six weeks prior to applying for
their entry visa. An additional dose of vaccine was given as pilgrims
arrived in Saudi Arabia
.
Every
year, Saudi Arabia publishes health conditions for pilgrims participating in the Hajj to ensure
public health safety. More
A
pilgrim in Port Sudan holding his health
card,
proof that he has received polio
vaccination
before departure for the Hajj.
(Photo:
WHO Sudan)
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