The wild polio-free status of Africa is set to be determined in August by the Independent Africa Regional Certification Commission (ARCC), which is in charge of certifying the eradication of wild poliovirus in the African region of the World Health Organization (WHO), the UN Health Agency said.
WHO said the commission is expected to make its final decision on the wild poliovirus status of the area in August, in a statement released on Friday.
The wild polio-free status of Africa will be determined on the basis of field verification visits over the past year and a critical analysis of the polio surveillance, immunization and laboratory capacity documentation presented by the governments of Cameroon, Central African Republic, Nigeria and South Sudan.
On Thursday, the commission had confirmed documents from the four countries confirming their wild polio-free status.
WHO Regional Director for Africa, Matshidiso Moeti, said the achievement of Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Nigeria and South Sudan is a significant step towards wild poliovirus eradication in the African region.
“As the continent struggles with COVID-19, this milestone shows that when leaders, partners, health workers and communities come together we can triumph over the most difficult health challenges.”
If the region is certified in August, it will be the fifth of the six wild polio-free WHO regions to be announced.
As of the last wild polio detection occurrence in Nigeria in 2016, WHO Africa region has not been declared polio-free so far.
The last wild poliovirus-caused paralysis was identified in Nigeria in August 2016 while a sewage sample collected in May 2014 found the last environment sample with traces of the wild poliovirus in Kaduna state.
However, after Nigeria reported no new cases of wild poliovirus for three consecutive years, the African region became eligible to be declared free of wild poliovirus, in August 2019.
That is the required period for any country to be polio-free certified.
The commission had already received documents from the other 43 countries in the region according to the UN agency.
The members of the ARCC are charged with reviewing certification documentation from all 47 WHO African region countries and verifying the absence of poliovirus in the presence of certification-standard monitoring.
The Chairperson, ARCC, Rose Leke, said they ‘re satisfied with the documentation presented by the four countries.
“We are reviewing updated reports from the other 43 countries in the WHO African Region and we anticipate that by August 2020, we will deliver our final decision on the region’s certification status of wild poliovirus eradication,” she added.
Meanwhile, Faisal Shuaib, Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA), in a tweet at @drfaisalshuaib described the documentation as historical.
“Amazing moment in history to have had our polio-eradication documentation accepted by (ARCC); the Nigeria team led by NPHCDA and partners demonstrated evidence of our polio-free status.
“Nigeria achieving a Wild Polio Virus-free status today, is significant on multiple fronts.
“I look back at the incredible leadership that has brought us here.
“Apart from President Muhammadu Buhari, GCFR, the two most important people who have made it possible due to their financial and technological contributions have been Mr Aliko Dangote and Mr Bill Gates.
“Thanks for this unquantifiable gift to Nigeria,’’ he said.
Amazing moment in history to have had our polio-eradication documentation accepted by the African Regional Certification Committee (ARCC). The Nigeria team led by NPHCDA and partners demonstrated evidence of our polio-free status. pic.twitter.com/B9nplm7whV
— Dr. Faisal Shuaib (@drfaisalshuaib) June 18, 2020
The leadership provided by Mr President, our traditional and religious leaders, our indefatigable partners, past Presidents, Ministers, ED/CEOs of NPHCDA/NPI, leaders in the public health space, the media, polio victims, parents and many too numerous to mention
— Dr. Faisal Shuaib (@drfaisalshuaib) June 18, 2020
WHO spokesperson in Nigeria, Charity Warigon, said Friday that the global health agency has yet to make Nigeria’s official declaration as a polio free country.
She said the documentation exercise concluded implies that “Nigeria has successfully stopped the circulation of wild poliovirus within the country.”
Ms Warigon said the official statement was due to be made during August ‘s meeting of the WHO regional committee for Africa.
“Yesterday, Nigeria’s documentation for wild polio virus free status was accepted by the Africa Regional Certification Commission for polio eradication (ARCC),” she said.
“This implies that there is no indigenous circulation of the wild poliovirus in Nigeria. Put differently, Nigeria has successfully stopped the circulation of wild poliovirus within the country.
“However, we expect a formal announcement of the certification of eradication of wild polioviruses in the African region to be made later in 2020, possibly, during the WHO regional committee for Africa meeting in August, to be attended by all 47 ministers of health.”
Poliomyelitis (polio) is a viral disease that is highly infectious and mostly affects young children.
The virus is transmitted from person to person, spread mainly through the faecal-oral route, or via contaminated water or food, and multiplies in the intestine from where it can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis.
While there is no cure for polio, a simple and efficient vaccine will prevent the disease.
That is why WHO and other international partners have stepped up efforts in each country to rapidly improve children’s immunity rates and protect them against polio paralysis.
Although the wild poliovirus has been successfully interrupted in Nigeria, a new cause of concern is a new form of polio known as Circulating Vaccine-derived poliovirus circulating in some African countries.
Twelve African countries in the WHO African region are currently experiencing the outbreak, namely: Angola, Benin, Cameroon, Central African Republic , Chad, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Ghana, Niger , Nigeria, Togo and Zambia.
WHO Africa has said that the scale of ongoing circulating polio outbreaks derived from vaccines is a battle the region is striving to win.
Polioviruses derived from vaccines are rare, but sometimes these viruses are found in severely under-immunized populations living in areas where sanitation is inadequate.
Ms Moeti said efforts are underway to tackle the circulating outbreaks of poliovirus derived from the vaccine as a matter of urgency, also in the context of polio eradication being an international public health emergency.
Ms Moeti said that WHO, UNICEF, Rotary International, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, will continue to support governments in their efforts to stop the ongoing outbreaks of poliovirus from the circulation of vaccines, including through the implementation of a new response strategy.
She said the aim is to ensure that any poliovirus-wild or derived from vaccines-will never again paralyze any child anywhere in Africa.
“Even though they are not wild polioviruses, such rare strains – which can emerge in areas of low population immunity – also paralyse children, it stated.
“With the COVID-19 pandemic, mass immunizations across the region have been postponed until further notice, which hinders outbreak response activities.”
In addition to supporting the COVID-19 response, the African Region’s polio eradication program works with countries to ensure the continuity of essential disease monitoring activities as well as to plan the resumption of immunization and outbreak response in accordance with the guidance to stop COVID-19 transmission.
Also, Ms Warigon said the main message is that, given Nigeria ‘s historic adoption of full data, now is not the time to take the foot off the accelerator, as regards the effort to eradicate polio.
“In order to sustain the gains, a lot more needs to be done to increase and sustain routine immunization coverage with adequate structure for continued vigilance (surveillance),” she added.
