Polio Control Programme IX

completed

In 1988, the international community agreed to eradicate polio. Between 1988 and 2018, the number of infections worldwide was reduced from 350,000 to 29 cases per year. At the same time, the number of polio-endemic countries has fallen from 125 to three, namely Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria. The fight against the poliovirus is being conducted under the umbrella of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI). The GPEI was developed by WHO and UNICEF and receives funding from many international donors. In Nigeria, the activities of the WHO and UNICEF are financed by KfW, the BMGF, the EU, the Korean government, USAID and the Canadians. For the final phase of the global polio eradication campaign, the GPEI has decided to step up its activities in the remaining polio-endemic countries of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria as well as in the polio-risk countries. The prospects of success of the GPEI have never been better than they are today. However, as the emergence of polio infections in Nigeria in 2016 has shown, what has already been achieved is not yet secure. Against this background, there is no alternative to a forced and consistent implementation of the vaccination strategy that has already been defined and which is constantly being adapted for Nigeria. This requires appropriate political commitment from all those involved and the timely provision of sufficient financial resources. The additional funds that were made available in December 2017 will help to secure the budget of the Nigeria Polio Eradication Emergency Plan for the first half of 2018.