One new Wild Polio cases reported this week.  We are now 2 weeks since the most recent reported Wild Polio Case – on 6/10/23 in Afghanistan. 

What is that Polio Picture? Many of our Super Advocates for Global Polio Eradication are Polio Survivors. When Ibrahim Mohammed was 12 years old, his life was altered forever when his left leg was paralyzed after contracting poliovirus. Not wanting to see the same devastation happen to other children, today Ibrahim uses his perspective and experience as a polio survivor to advocate for polio immunization in his community of Guasu, the capital of Zamfara State. Ibrahim supports that an extensive vaccination exercise is important to stopping transmission of the virus and is glad to educate residents about the need to eradicate all forms of polio in the state.

He is working with a team of vaccinators in ensuring all eligible children in the allocated catchment area in his LGA receive the vaccine. Leveraging his experience as a mobilizer during the wild Poliovirus eradication campaigns, he goes from house to house to convince parents to vaccinate their children against polio because he does not want any child in Gusau to be paralyzed by polio like him.

Ibrahim sometimes feels sad because his paralysis deters him from doing many things, and does not want anyone to experience it. “Many times my story makes the parents understand the consequences of their children not getting vaccinated. No parent wants their children paralyzed. But some parents are still not convinced and refused to allow their children to receive vaccination. They won’t accept the polio vaccine saying it will have a harmful effect on their children.

The level of awareness and reception from the community on immunization matters is now better compared to some years back when the parents usually abuse us, stone us or chase us away with sticks,” he says. Under the Extended National Immunization Program, oral polio vaccine and inactivated polio vaccine are provided to children across the country as part of routine immunization.

Ibrahim is however optimistic that Nigeria can eradicate the Circulating Variant Poliovirus type 2 (cVPDP2), in the way it eradicated the wild poliovirus.

Now, Ibrahim hopes for Nigeria’s polio-free future!

A Win Against Polio is a Win for Global Health!

2023 Circulating Vaccine Derived Polio Cases – 117 Benin – 3, Central African Republic – 7, Chad – 8, Cite d’ Ivoire – 2, DR Congo – 65, Indonesia – 3, Israel – 1, Madagascar – 10, Mali – 3, Mozambique – 3, Nigeria – 10, Somalia – 2.

New Polio Cases & Samples This Week –

• Afghanistan: one WPV1 case
• Benin: one cVDPV2 case
• Madagascar: three cVDPV1 cases and one cVDPV1 positive environmental sample
• Mali: one cVDPV2 case

2022 Circulating Vaccine Derived Polio Case Total – 909 Afghanistan – 43, Algeria – 3, Benin – 11 (3 in 2021), Burundi – 1, Cameroon – 3 (3 in 2021), Central African Republic – 5, Chad -44 (0 in 2021), DR Congo – 507 (28 in 2021), Republic of Congo – 1, Eritrea – 1, Ethiopia – 1, Ghana – 3, Indonesia – 1, Israel – 1, Madagascar – 14 (13 in 2021), Malawi – 4, Mali – 2, Mozambique – 22 (2 in 2021), Niger – 15 (18 in 2021), Nigeria – 48 (415 in 2021), Pakistan – 8, Somalia – 5 (1 in 2021), Sudan – 1, Togo – 2, United States – 1, Yemen – 162 (69 in 2021).

2021 Circulating Vaccine Derived Polio Cases -689 in 22 Countries.  

2020 Circulating Vaccine Derived Polio Cases – 1,113 in 26 countries in 2020.

Quote of the Day

“Do your little bit of good where you are; it’s those little bits of good put together that overwhelm the world.”“

— Bishop Desmond Tutu (1931-2021), Anglican bishop, Nobel Peace Price 

The Final Two Polio Endemic Countries:

as of 6/24/2023

1 new Polio cases reported this week. The most recent cases had an onset of paralysis on 6/10/23.
0 WPV1 and 0 CVDPV2-Positive Environmental Samples were reported this week in Afghanistan.
5 Wild Polio cases – 2023
2 Wild Polio case – 2022
4 Wild Polio cases – 2021
56 Wild Polio cases – 2020

Our Goal is Global Polio Eradication!!

Terry Ziegler, Polio Update Newsletter Editor Rotary Region 36