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25 July
Polio: Eradicate, Educate,
Rehabilitate
Ramesh Ferris is an Indian-born
Canadian with a message: the end of polio is within reach. The 28-year-old polio
survivor is hand cycling across Canada this year as part of the Cycle
to Walk campaign – a fundraising and public education initiative geared to
bring polio back to the forefront of people’s minds.
“We have the solution to
polio in our hands,” says Ferris. “It’s time we end the disease once and
for all.” Referring to the 99% reduction in polio worldwide since the
establishment of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Ferris adds,
"Ninety-nine per cent isn’t good enough. It’s time to finish the job.”
To date, the Cycle to Walk
campaign has raised over a quarter of its goal of Canadian $1 million. Cycle to
Walk launched from Victoria, British Columbia on April 12, 2008, and will arrive
at Cape Spear, Newfoundland and Labrador on October 1. Please visit www.cycletowalk.com
for more information, updates, sponsorship opportunities, and to donate online. Photo
by Chris Madden.
17 July
Polio in North West Frontier
Province
Pakistan has reported a case of wild poliovirus
type 1 in Swat district of North West Frontier Province. This is the first case
of polio in this district since June 2007, but is not unexpected given the lack
of access to children due to the prevailing security situation in the area.
Recent vaccination campaigns scheduled for 1-3 July did not take place in Swat.
Campaigns are however being prepared to start 28 July. Planning is under way for
a 5 August mop-up response in Swat and surrounding districts, aimed at reaching
800 000 children under the age of five years.
Despite a peace accord between local forces and
the federal government, security conditions are precarious in Swat and access to
children is uneven across the district. As in conflict situations around the
world, the polio eradication teams will be looking for windows of opportunity to
access difficult areas and ensure that children receive vaccine.
The child affected is a
seven-month old girl with onset of paralysis on 3 July. The case will be
reflected in the weekly global data of WHO
headquarters on 22 July.
15 July
Urgent operational improvements
critical to stop Nigeria outbreak, says Expert Review Committee
Nigeria has reported 90% of all type 1 polio cases in the
world this year, with the bulk of these from eight northern states and a third from Kano alone (see latest
weekly case count). It is against this backdrop that the Expert Review Committee for Polio Eradication and Routine Immunization in Nigeria (ERC) met last week in Kano and recommended that the recent high-level political commitments in the country be urgently turned into measurable improvements in vaccination campaign operations. The committee proposed a timeframe of 12 months of intensified eradication activities aimed at stopping type 1 poliovirus transmission.
The group, composed of international and national experts, recommended that optimal use be made of three new high-level political commitments on Polio Eradication and Routine Immunization: a Presidential Initiative, a Technical Steering Committee and a Task Force. The ERC stated that these initiatives should be complemented by mechanisms at state and local level to drive and oversee improvements in the quality and monitoring of Immunization Plus Days and the strategic use of appropriate vaccines.
The ERC concluded that the outbreak is clearly a result of failure to vaccinate, with 42% of children in high polio-burden states receiving three or more doses of vaccine, compared to 87% in polio-free states. The group expressed concern that since its March meeting
(report) the alarming type 1 polio outbreak in Nigeria has grown over 10-fold. Recommendations from the previous ERC meeting have been implemented unevenly, with encouraging improvements in some states but large proportions of missed children in others.
The outbreak has spread to Benin and the Burkina Faso-Niger border, and there is
a high risk of further international spread. This prompted the World Health
Assembly in May to issue a resolution urging Nigeria to intensify eradication
activities (more).
The 15th meeting of the ERC took place on 9-10 July, days after the Federal Minister of Health established a Steering Technical Committee and Task Force on Polio Eradication and Routine Immunization to urgently address the escalating outbreak. This high-level commitment is strengthened by a new Presidential Initiative on Polio Eradication and Routine Immunization.
Read the full report
of the 15th ERC
8 July
As G8 renews commitments to
polio eradication, Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announces additional $150 million
contribution
At their summit meeting today in
Japan, the G8 nations today stated that to "maintain momentum towards
the historical achievement of eradicating polio, we will meet our previous
commitments to maintain or increase financial contributions to support the
Global Polio Eradication Initiative, and encourage other public and private
donors to do the same." Together the G8 countries account for more than
half of all contributions to the eradication of polio.
Read more in the G8 communiqué on "Development
and Africa"
On the release of the communiqué,
the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
said it "welcomes the G8's important renewal of their commitment to meet or
exceed their previous financial contributions to polio eradication. We strongly
encourage all the G8 countries to translate their Hokkaido and Gleneagles polio
commitments into real financial resources and focused action. We will work with
the international community, including the four polio endemic countries, to
reach our shared objective of early eradication.
"In recognition of the G8's
continued attention to polio eradication, the foundation will commit at least
$150 million to fight polio this year. This is in addition to the $250 million
we have committed to date toward polio eradication efforts. We will continue to
work closely with governments and with the private and non-governmental sectors
to ensure that, together, we fulfill the political and financial commitments
necessary to eradicate this disease."
The partners in the Global Polio
Eradication Initiative are working with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
to finalize this commitment, so that funds are quickly made available for
immunization and surveillance activities in polio-affected countries. Read the complete
Gates
Foundation statement
1 July
Engagement of Chief Ministers
of Sindh and Balochistan, following technical consultation on polio eradication
in Pakistan
A targeted supplementary
immunization activity targeting 17.8 million children is being held in 67
selected districts of the country from 1-3 July. Staff have been moved
from non-participating districts to campaign districts to ensure the intensified
supervision required for a high quality vaccination activity.
Spurred by the increase of polio
cases in Pakistan, particularly centred in Sindh, the Federal Ministry of Health
convened a technical consultation meeting from 24 to 25 June 2008 in Karachi.
The meeting was attended by the Federal Secretary of Health, the Federal
Director-General of Health and senior health officials of Sindh and North West
Frontier Province. Dr. David Heymann, Representative of
the WHO Director-General on Polio Eradication also addressed the meeting. A
high-level delegation later met with the Chief Minister of Sindh, His Excellency
Mr. Qaim Ali Shah, who guaranteed his full support of polio eradication
activities in his province.
In Balochistan, the campaign was
launched in Quetta by the Chief Minister, His Excellency Mr. Nawab Muhammad
Aslam Raisani, here shown marking a child's finger after vaccination. In Punjab,
the vaccination campaign was launched by a renowned religious leader Maulana
Mazhar Saeed Kazmi in the southern Punjab district of Multan.
Photo and text
courtesy of WHO/Pakistan
polio eradication initiative
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