Niger vows to eradicate polio by year end

You Are Here: Home » Africa » Niger Vows to Eradicate Polio By Year End

Niger Vows to Eradicate Polio By Year End

Posted on admin on March 21, 2010 // Leave Your Comment

125px-Flag_of_Niger.svg_5 The wild polio virus is still circulating in Niger, where in 2009, 15 cases were detected in the regions of Zinder, Maradi (east-central) and Diffa (far-east), while the health authorities are deploying various actions to overcome this debilitating disease in children, official sources in Niamey told APA.

Among the reasons for this persistence, the national director of the fight against the disease, Dr Issoufou Aboubacar, said “it is mostly due to the inaccessibility of many children to the routine immunization services during the EPI (Expanded Program on Immunization) and during mass campaigns conducted each year in the country.

“These factors add to the phenomena of refusal maintained in part by rumors about the quality of the vaccine against polio’” he said.

Yet, noted Dr. Aboubacar said the eradication of polio is “within reach” because polio was in sharp decline in Niger where the figures dropped from 350,000 cases in 1988 at the start of the initiative, to 1250 cases in 2009.

To keep the momentum, the Niger health authorities are planning to launch the next national immunization days against polio from the 26 to 29 of March, as an opportunity to administer two drops of vaccine to children from 0 to 5 years old, who are the most vulnerable group to the disease.

Four countries are still facing challenges to respond to the end of the 2010 deadline set for eradicating this disease, sources disclosed.

“The objective of eradicating the wild polio virus is being achieved,” stated Dr. Aboubacar, who was talking with the media about the action planned in the next few days against polio, to take place in towns, villages, and at water points and transhuman corridors.

Source African Press Agency

African News from NetNewsPublisher.com