A coalition of Civil Society Organisations, CSOs have warned that the diminishing global efforts on Polio eradication will impact negatively on developing countries even as it disclosed that “an epidemic has just been declared in three regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo.”
The 25 CSOs drawn from Africa and Haiti also lamented that Polio was still endemic in Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan.
In a press release issued by APO Group on behalf of the CSOs, to mark this year’s World Polio Day, celebrated on October 24, the group said: “As Polio has not been completely eradicated globally, it has resurfaced in the Democratic Republic of Congo where the health and vaccination systems are still not strong, and this offers no protection to populations who are traveling for various reasons.
“Interventions must be strengthened, now more than ever, since the remaining virus pockets are a glaring risk that can lead to new infections if the disease is not eradicated completely.”
According to Ferdinand Tabi of PROVARESSC, a Cameroonian Civil Society Organisation, “The prevailing political crisis in the three countries, Afghanistan, Nigeria and Pakistan, has led to significant migration between countries, and is indeed a real risk that can enhance the spread.”
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The CSOs expressed concern over the ending of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative funding in 2020 pointing out that it would result in a drastic reduction in financial resources, a situation which according to them, will poses a threat to the health systems in many countries as the funding to eradicate Polio has been their main stay in the last decades.
It is not all gloom; however, as the release pointed out that “worldwide, more than 16 million people have been saved from paralysis while more than 1.5 million lives have been saved.”
Meanwhile, the release disclosed that a campaign tagged “33 days to power up Immunization” has been initiated and is running, noting; “The campaign is therefore encouraging all who can support current efforts and help create a Polio-free world to donate to Rotary International through endpolio.org.”
It also disclosed that the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation will increase their donations (50 million USD each year), for the next two years.
The release further noted that the 33 days period stretching has important moments for immunization, saying, “
The “33 days to power up Immunization” is an initiative from Niyel, one of the civil society organisations, that began in 2017 and which allows civil society organizations to engage either policymakers or the media in a push for greater domestic investment in immunization and accountability.
It runs from October 11 to November 12.
