Africa has been declared free of polio by the World Health Organisation in a significant public health milestone. WHO's Africa Regional Certification Commission-certified 47 nations of Africa to be free of wild polio on August 25, 2020.
The development marks a significant landmark in a decades-long campaign to eradicate the viral disease from across the world. WHO's Regional Director of Africa, Dr. Matshidiso Moeti made the announcement, describing it as a historic day for Africa.
WHO stated that poliovirus now joins smallpox in the list of viruses that have been wiped out in Africa. A commission led by Prof. Rose Gana Fomban Leke certified that no cases had occurred on the African continent for the past four years, which is a threshold for the eradication of poliovirus.
"Today is a day of celebration, and a day of hope.
— World Health Organization (WHO) (@WHO) August 25, 2020
Today we come together to rejoice over an historic public health success - the certification of wild poliovirus eradication in the African Region."-@DrTedros #AFRORC70#EndPolio #AfricaKicksOutWildPolio pic.twitter.com/RjUAKm98zq
When was the last Polio case reported in Africa?
The last case of wild polio in Africa was reported in Nigeria four years ago. According to WHO, about 95 percent of Africa's population has now been immunised, which was one of the conditions set by the Africa Regional Certification Commission before declaring the continent free from wild polio.
Has Polio threat been completely wiped out from Africa?
No, while the threat of wild polio has been wiped out, the threat of vaccine-derived polio continues to remain.
What is Polio? |
| Polio is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus, which may lead to paralysis or muscle weakening in a limb. The virus is transmitted through contaminated water or food, or contact with an infected person. The virus can lead to paralysis if it attacks the nervous system. Polio Symptoms Most people infected with the poliovirus don't become sick and have no symptoms. The fatal cases, however, do develop paralysis. What is the cure? There is no cure for Polio but now the polio vaccine can protect children and immunise them against the disease. Who is most vulnerable to the Poliovirus? Children below the age of five years are most vulnerable to polio disease, which sometimes leads to irreversible paralysis and death in rare cases when breathing muscles are impacted. |
Has Polio been eradicated from the world?
WHO has declared that two of the three strains of wild poliovirus have been eradicated worldwide. Africa was declared free from the last strain of the wild poliovirus. The disease is only prevalent in parts of Pakistan and Afghanistan now.
Polio Eradication Campaign in Africa
WHO had launched the ambitious polio eradication campaign in Africa 24 years ago in 1996. At that time, polio had paralysed roughly 75,000 children on the continent each year. The continent's last known case was in August 2016. Since then no case of wild polio has been reported. The achievement is the result of massive vaccination drive and surveillance efforts undertaken by the healthcare workers and the international community.
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