The Strategic Advisory Group of Experts on immunization (SAGE) is meeting this week in Geneva, Switzerland. The group is expected to review the global polio eradication status and advise on additional measures that should be undertaken to fully implement the Polio Endgame Strategic Plan and secure a lasting polio-free world.
The GPEI Secretariat Report to the upcoming World Health Assembly (WHA) has been finalized and is available here. The report summarises the current status against all four objectives of the Polio Endgame Plan, and will be the main tool to inform discussions by Member States at next month’s WHA.
This week marks the World Immunization Week, aimed at raising global awareness of the need to ensure all children are vaccinated against polio and all vaccine-preventable diseases. The GPEI has launched two animations to help mark this special week, on the Polio Surveillance System and Reaching Every Last Child.
New on polioeradication.org this week: the GPEI Semi-annual Status Report July-December 2016. Summary of newly-reported viruses this week: Afghanistan: two new wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) environmental positive samples; and, Pakistan: four new WPV1 environmental positive samples. See country sections below for further information.
NA: onset of paralysis in most recent case is prior to 2015. Figures exclude non-AFP sources. Lao PDR cVDPV1, all others cVDPV2. cVDPV definition: see document “Reporting and classification of vaccine-derived polioviruses” at [pdf]
