Sanday Chongo Kabange, AfricaNews reporter in Lusaka, Zambia
Over 85 million children under five years old will be immunized against polio in 19 countries across West and Central Africa in a massive example of cross-border cooperation aimed at stopping a year-long polio epidemic. Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Senegal and Sierra Leone are considered to have active outbreaks of polio within the last six months.
The campaign kicked off on March 6 in these countries as well as Nigeria, Ghana, Benin, Central African Republic, Gambia, Cape Verde and Guinea Bissau. Niger, Togo and Cote d’Ivoire will join at a later date due to political transitions or elections.
Campaign
Over 400,000 volunteers and health workers will take part in the campaign, which is part of an ongoing response to the epidemic that first spread from polio-endemic Nigeria to its polio-free neighbours in 2008 and is still paralyzing children in West and Central Africa.
This complex logistical operation is largely made possible by US$ 30 million in extraordinary funding released by Rotary International, a major partner in the global effort to stop polio.
WHO Regional Director for Africa, Dr Luis Gomes Sambo, said the synchronized campaign showed Africa's determination to be free of polio. "From the top leadership to local district administrators in every country," he said, "we are each accountable to the African child – to vaccinate every child and achieve high coverage."
Failure
A previous round of campaigns in 2009 did not stop the outbreak completely, as not enough children were vaccinated to stop polio transmission. After years with no polio cases, some countries lacked the necessary skills and experience to respond adequately to the outbreak. New approaches being introduced this year include standardized, independent monitoring of whether children have been reached, better training for vaccinators to carry out the plans fully and appropriate deployment of experienced staff.
UNICEF’s Regional Director for West and Central Africa, Dr Gianfranco Rotigliano noted, "With better coverage that leaves no child unvaccinated, these campaigns can succeed in making West and Central Africa polio-free."
This campaign will be repeated on 24 April in the same 19 countries.
Focus
In between; children in six countries with recent cases will receive an additional dose on 26 March as part of a new Short Interval Additional Dose strategy that has proven successful in rapidly building population immunity where needed.
These six countries are Burkina Faso, Guinea, Liberia, Mauritania, Senegal and Sierra Leone.
Chairperson of Rotary's Africa Regional PolioPlus Committee, Ambroise Tshimbalanga-Kasongo said, "We at Rotary are proud to have provided the funding necessary for the March rounds and we call on others to play their part in making Africa polio-free by providing funding necessary for more high coverage campaigns."
To end this outbreak, two drops of oral polio vaccine (OPV) will be administered to every child at the door of every dwelling in all 19 countries. A dedicated army of volunteers and health workers will work up to 12 hours per day, travelling on foot or bicycles, in cars and boats and on motorcycles, in often trying conditions.
Each vaccination team will carry the vaccine in special carriers, filled with ice packs to ensure the vaccine remains below the required 8ºC.
Verbreitungskarte des Polio-Virus, Stand: Nov. 2008

 In West- und Zentralafrika läuft momentan eine Impfaktion gegen Polio, in deren Rahmen über 85 Millionen Kinder im Alter von unter fünf Jahren in 19 Ländern geimpft werden sollen. Ziel der gemeinsamen Initiative von UNICEF, Weltgesundheitsorganisation (WHO) und zahlreichen anderen Hilfsorganisationen ist es, eine Epidemie in der Region zu stoppen und das Poliovirus in Westafrika auszurotten, wie es bereits in weiten Teilen der Welt geschehen ist.

In den letzten sechs Monaten war es in Burkina Faso, Kamerun, Tschad, Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Mauretanien, Senegal und Sierra Leone zu Krankheitsfällen gekommen. Seit Februar 2008 gab es in 19 Ländern 1.469 Krankheitsfälle, wie der UNICEF-Direktor für West- und Zentralafrika, Gianfranco Rotigliano, gegenüber der Nachrichtenagentur AFP mitteilte.

Ermöglicht wird die Aktion insbesondere durch eine 30-Millionen-US-Dollar-Finanzierung von Rotary International. An der Kampagne beteiligen sich über 400.000 Freiwillige und Mitarbeiter des Gesundheitswesens. Sie begann am 6. März in 16 Ländern. Niger, Togo und die Elfenbeinkünste werden aufgrund von politischen Wechseln oder Wahlen später folgen.

Gianfranco Rotigliano sowie der WHO-Regional-Direktor für Afrika, Dr. Luis Gomes Sambo, zeigten sich zuversichtlich, durch eine hohe Impfrate dauerhafte Erfolge erzielen zu können. Eine Impfkampagne im Jahr 2009 scheiterte, weil der erreichte Durchimpfungsgrad zu gering war.