Polio Budget Cuts and New Cases Spark Global Health Concerns

Hanan Balkhy, Regional Director of the World Health Organization (WHO) for the Eastern Mediterranean, has said that in 2026, the polio eradication program will face a 40% budget cut.

The Health Policy Watch has reported that this budget reduction comes at a time when polio cases have increased in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

Hanan Balkhy warned that if investment is not made in this area, polio could once again spread across the globe.

“We are at a tipping point. Either we invest now to finish the job or risk a global resurgence,” she said.

Speaking at the World Health Assembly in Geneva, Hanan Balkhy said that at the beginning of 2024, the poliovirus was nearly eliminated in Afghanistan and Pakistan, but according to her, new cases in Somalia, Sudan, Yemen, and Gaza have worsened the situation.

The Global Polio Eradication Initiative began in 1988, with an initial target to eradicate the virus by 2000. However, due to delays and the virus not being fully controlled, the deadline has now been extended to 2029.

The World Health Organization had requested a budget of $6.9 billion for this program, but so far, only $4.6 billion has been secured.

The program’s budget has been reduced significantly due to the withdrawal of U.S. support from WHO.

The 78th World Health Assembly in Geneva, held under the theme “One World for Health,” began on May 19 and will continue until May 27.