Over 23M children to be vaccinated in Africa after Malawi polio outbreak

By Burak Dag

ANKARA (AA) – More than 23 million children in five African nations will be immunized against polio in a mass vaccination campaign after an outbreak in Malawi.

In February, Malawi reported what was the first case of wild poliovirus in the country in 30 years and the first in Africa for five years.

An immunization drive kicked off in Malawi on Sunday and will be followed on Thursday with campaigns starting in neighboring Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia, according to a UNICEF statement.

This first round will target over 9 million children in the four countries.

Three more rounds, in which Zimbabwe will also take part, are set for April, June and July, the WHO Regional Office for Africa said earlier this week.

The campaigns are being led by the respective governments and supported by UNICEF, the WHO and other partners of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative.

It is imperative “to do everything possible to stop the virus in its tracks,” said Mohamed M. Fall, UNICEF regional director for Eastern and Southern Africa.

“A regional response is vital as polio is extremely contagious and can spread easily as people move across borders. There is no cure for polio, but the vaccine protects children for life,” he added.

The UNICEF statement said the agency has procured more than 36 million doses of polio vaccine for the first two rounds of immunizations in Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania and Zambia.