Polio is being eradicated in Somalia, with children being immunised on national vaccination day.

Polio is being eradicated in Somalia, with children being immunised on national vaccination day.

7 June 2022 – The WHO Representative in Somalia, Dr Mamunur Rahman Malik, was joined by UNICEF Country Representative Ms Angela Kearney, the Governor and Mayor of Mogadishu, HE Omar Mohamed Mohamud Flish, and the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General and the United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, Mr Adam Abdelmoula, to officially launch the national polio immunisation day in Somalia on 6 They went to a camp for internally displaced people in Manahijta and the Waberi health centre in Banadir city to officially launch national immunisation day and polio vaccinations for children.

Except for Puntland and Somaliland, the country's continuing polio vaccination programme is aimed at over 3.5 million children under the age of five. The first round of the polio vaccination campaign was held in March, with about 95 percent of the 3.5 million children under the age of five receiving an oral polio vaccine.

Since 2015, Somalia has been free of wild polio virus transmission. A different kind of polio virus, known as circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2), has been circulating in Somalia since 2017, causing paralysis and impairment in a number of youngsters.

"So far, 32 children have been permanently paralysed or disabled as a result of the polio outbreak caused by vaccine-derived type 2 and type 3 virus. As a result, these children are unable to run, walk, or play as they should. It also means that 26 families have been through a great deal of social and financial hardship. It is a moral imperative for us to eradicate polio in Somalia and the rest of the world. We want to ensure that every kid born today lives a healthy life and has equitable access to health care. The threat of polio in today's linked and globalised society is real.

After vaccination the children against polio and formally launching the national immunisation day for polio, Mr Adam Abdelmoula, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary General and United Nations Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Somalia, said, "One country is a threat everywhere."

The vaccine-derived poliovirus circulates in an environment where childhood polio vaccination is not routinely administered, and as a result, children's immunity to polio remains low. This new strain of polio virus has established itself in central and southern Somalia, with spillover leading in cross-border transmission in northern Somalia, Kenya, and Ethiopia.

In addition to being inaccessible, reaching every child in the country is a big challenge. Other complicating issues, such as constant population movement within and between inaccessible areas and refugee camps in Somalia and neighbouring countries (particularly Kenya), are slowing progress.

"The fundamental reason for the country's inability to stem the spread of this strain of polio virus is the health sector's incapacity to reach and vaccinate all children, particularly "zero-dose" children who have never been vaccinated and have no vaccination shield to protect them." These national immunisation days provide you the chance to check for any remaining vaccines.

child and give them an oral polio vaccine. We are hopeful that by working together and ensuring that we use speed and precision to vaccinate all children targeted for such campaigns against polio and measles, the country will be able to defeat this virus and the debilitating disease it causes, said Dr Sk Md Mamunur Rahman Malik, WHO Representative in Somalia.

WHO and UNICEF are assisting the government in organising these national immunisation days as a more efficient approach to reach and vaccinate every kid against polio. Except for Somaliland and Puntland, all districts in the south and central areas of Somalia are being covered by the second round of national vaccination days utilising monovalent oral polio vaccine.

type 2 (mOPV2) from June 5 to 8, 2022, as part of a plan to stop the spread by blocking cVDPV2. More than 20 664 polio vaccinators carrying registers traversed the country on foot, by car, camel, and donkey, knocking on doors and worked relentlessly to reach as many children as possible during the campaign after significant groundwork, including microplanning, team training, and logistic preparation. More than 4090 supervisors from the Ministry of Health, WHO, and UNICEF will be checking the quality of the programmes, while 10 333 social mobilizers and 146 regional and district social mobilisation coordinators will be going from house to house to ensure that the campaigns are successful.

Explain the enormous benefits of the polio vaccine to youngsters and encourage parents to take their children to a nearby health centre to get vaccinated against polio if they are not reached by vaccinators who move from home to house.

Editors' Note

Polio is a highly contagious virus-borne disease that primarily affects children under the age of five. It infiltrates the neurological system, causing paralysis or death. Vaccination is the only effective approach to protect our children against the devastating disease, even if there is no treatment. Every time a child under the age of five receives the polio vaccine, their chances of catching the disease are increased. Such

Millions of children have been protected from polio thanks to frequent immunizations, and several countries have been polio-free. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative, which is a public-private partnership led by national governments with six core partners – the World Health Organization (WHO), Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Gavi – the Vaccine Alliance – supports national polio immunisation days and keeping countries polio-free. Its purpose is to wipe polio out of the planet.

Please contact: for more information.

Dr. Ali M. Bin Break, acting Team Lead for the Polio Eradication Programme, is a medical officer.

Somalia, WHO abin@who.int

Kyle DeFreitas, WHO Somalia Lead External Relations defreitask@who.int

Fouzia Bano, a.i., WHO Communications Officer/Chief of Staff Somalia \sbanof@who.int