WHO Urges Continued Global Support to Eradicate Polio
The World Health Organization (WHO), in a recent report, has called for sustained international support in the fight against polio, noting that over 100 positive cases of the disease were recorded in Afghanistan and Pakistan last year.
According to the report, the organization urged member states, donor agencies, and the international community to continue their support for Afghanistan and Pakistan.
A section of the report states: “Despite significant progress, more than 100 children in Afghanistan and Pakistan were paralyzed by the poliovirus last year. The Subcommittee on Polio Eradication also issued a statement regarding the cessation of virus transmission in these two countries and called on member states, donors, and the international community to maintain their support, as the last two polio-endemic countries are doubling their efforts to halt virus transmission.”
Medical professionals believe that WHO and partner organizations must not only continue conducting vaccination campaigns but also place a stronger focus on raising public awareness to achieve complete eradication.
Sayed Abdullah Ahmadi, a physician, told “Recent WHO reports show that polio — or infantile paralysis — still exists in Afghanistan and neighboring countries such as Pakistan. Despite heavy investment and the wide availability of vaccination in both countries, why hasn’t the disease been eradicated? One of the main reasons is the lack of an effective monitoring system. It is essential to ensure that vaccines are reaching people correctly and completely.”
Another doctor, Noorulhaq Amin, stated: “When someone enters certain countries, they are vaccinated to prevent the spread of this disease. Therefore, if vaccination coverage increases in our country and in Pakistan, we can prevent this disease.”
This comes while the Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan last year denied the presence of positive polio cases in the country and reported that in the most recent national polio vaccination campaign, over 11 million children under the age of five were vaccinated across the country.
