The World Health Organisation says it estimated that 500,000 children lacked access to immunisation from the wild polio virus in 2016. The Polio Eradication Programme Coordinator, WHO Regional Office for Africa, Dr Pascal Mkanda, stated this on Monday at a virtual press conference ahead of the official certification of Africa as a polio-free continent.Speaking at the press conference, Mkanda said Nigeria had earlier been adjudged polio-free but in July 2016 four cases were recorded in Borno State.
He said, “We had a setback in 2016…and later, in July 2016, we saw four cases in the North-East, Borno to be specific. So, working together, using a lot of technology, we estimated that we still had close to 500,000 children who were not reached because they were trapped due to the insurgency.”
Mkanda said due to combined efforts which included the military, the figure had dropped to 10,000 which was not enough to sustain transmission.
He said, “We have used a lot of technology, satellite imagery, we have worked with the military and by the time the African Regional Commission was making the decision that we had indeed tamed transmission in that place, we are talking of about less than 10,000 children in a very large geographical area where they cannot sustain transmission.”
Also speaking, Dr Rhodes Leke, who is the Chairperson, African Regional Commission for the Certification of the Eradication of Poliomyelitis, said although Africa would be officially declared polio-free on August 25, 2020, there was still the need to maintain surveillance.
She added, “Surveillance needs to be heightened. There are still two countries in the world – Afghanistan and Pakistan – that are still harbouring the transmission of the wild polio virus. So, we can have importations at any time.” The WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Matshidiso Moeti, said the designation of Africa as a polio-free continent was a memorable achievement.
