There is little doubt that the year 2020 will go down in history as one of transformation. No life was left untouched by the COVID-19 pandemic, which disrupted everything from international travel and trade to health systems. But it has not deterred the effort to eradicate polio. The Eastern Mediterranean regional polio programme reflects on 2020 as a...

When we last convened, it was a very different world. The COVID-19 pandemic was hitting its early stride, and the polio programme in our Region had just stepped forward bravely to meet this new public health challenge, working alongside national health programmes and, in countries with limited or weakened health infrastructure, stepping into the...

Delegates listen to Regional Polio Director Dr Hamid Jafari’s presentation on polio eradication in the Eastern Mediterranean Region. Credit: WHO/EMRO Renewed political commitment drives likely formation of new subcommittee for polio eradication and outbreaks. 14 October 2020 – Yesterday the 67th Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean...

While the COVID-19 response dominates community health concerns, every missed opportunity for vaccination puts the fragile gains made against polio in Somalia at risk of being undone Community surveillance teams for COVID-19 and acute flaccid paralysis speak to households about any individuals with symptoms in their area. The Somali polio team is...

  Polio personnel are putting in the hours to strengthen response Dr Niazy trains medical staff on handwashing during a COVID-19 training session in River Nile state. Photo: WHO/Sudan 28 May 2020 – The polio eradication programme has stepped up to help the Sudanese Ministry of Health limit spread of the COVID-19 virus. The programme is working in 14...

Polio programme staff are conducting disease surveillance for COVID-19 as well as educating communities on the symptoms of the virus, how to prevent transmission, and how to report suspected cases. ©WHO/Somalia4 May 2020 – “The road to the mountain village was rough. It’s only 50 kilometres, but it took more than 3 hours,” says Dr Fatima Ismail,...

April 2020 – Using the vast infrastructure developed to identify the poliovirus and deliver vaccination campaigns, the polio eradication programme is pitching in to protect the vulnerable from COVID-19, especially in polio-endemic countries. In Pakistan and Afghanistan, as well as worldwide, the programme is drawing on years of experience...

Majra Bibi gives polio drops to 10-day-old Bilal Khan at a health unit in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, Pakistan. The polio programme works to vaccinate every child and detect the poliovirus wherever it remains. ©WHO/Asad Zaidi 12 November 2019 -- In a rapidly expanding megacity, amongst conflict or in mountainous border areas, how does the polio...

Ala Baydoun dedicates her ultra-marathon run in Jordan to raise awareness in the final fight against polio Ala Baydoun runs through the Jordanian desert in the Rum International Marathon. Ala dedicated her run to raise awareness for polio eradication. Photo: Ali Barqawi22 January 2018 – It’s just after 6am on a Friday morning in Petra, one of...