Yamoussoukro, (Cote d'Ivoire), 1 September 2011 -- Countries in the WHO African Region continued to make good progress in polio eradication in spite of outbreaks recorded in some Member States over the last two years.

In a progress report on polio eradication to the WHO Regional Committee for Africa which opened in Yamoussoukro on Monday, WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr Luis Sambo, stated that from the beginning of 2010 up to May 2011, more than 214 million African children under five years of age were reached during several rounds of synchronized immunization activities.

He attributed the renewed momentum for polio eradication in the Region to the engagement of Heads of State and high-level advocacy visits to priority countries by the WHO Director-General and Regional Director, the UNICEF Executive Director, senior officials of Rotary International and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

As a result of these visits to Angola, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria, there was improvement in the engagement of Governors and traditional leaders in those countries, some of whom mobilized additional local resources in support of immunization.

Dr Sambo said in the report that acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) surveillance in the Region had improved with 38 out of 46 countries achieving and sustaining certification-standard performance indicators in 2010.

In 2009, he said, wild poliovirus (WPV) outbreaks which were reported in 15 countries were interrupted mid-year. In 2010, new outbreaks occurred in eight countries but were all interrupted within six months. He illustrated the success recorded in

Interrupting transmission in Nigeria, where there was a 95% reduction in reported WPV cases in 2010, compared to the previous year.

The Regional Director also referred to a major polio outbreak which occurred in Republic of Congo from September to December 2010 affecting mostly adults (74% of cases), and accounting for 67% of all cases in the Region in 2010.

Dr Sambo stated that in spite of the progress made in polio eradication in the Region, some challenges still remain.

These include low levels of domestic funding; low population immunity; suboptimal supplementary immunization activities, inadequate collaboration along and across borders and inadequate communication strategies. To address these challenges, the Region Director proposed that Member States, with the support of both local and international partners should:

• pursue effective and timely implementation of recommendations made by the Technical Advisory Groups including those on re-engagement of Governors and other leaders and administrators at sub-national level, traditional and religious leaders, and monitor progress towards polio eradication;
• enhance AFP surveillance at sub national level in order to achieve and maintain certification standards;
• improve the quality of SIAs by implementing Independent Monitoring in all SIAs and by using the data to guide immediate revaccination when required;
• mobilizing and allocating resources from national budgets to strengthen routine immunization.

Referring specifically to priority countries - Angola, Chad, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Nigeria -- Dr Sambo suggested that these countries should implement fully and in a timely manner their recently developed emergency plans to interrupt WPV by the end of 2011.

For more information, please contact:

MEDIA CONTACTS:

Samuel Ajibola ; WHO / AFRO, P.O. Box 06 Brazzaville ; 
Tel: +47 241 39378 (In Yamoussoukro - mobile 09301551

Collins Boakye-Agyemang, WHO / AFRO, B.P. 06, Brazzaville;
Tel: +47 241 39420