Global Polio Eradication Initiative: Global health leaders urge emergency action on polio at World Health Assembly
“In a year marked by the global COVID-19 pandemic, global health leaders convening virtually at this week’s World Health Assembly called for continued urgent action on polio eradication. The Assembly congratulated the African region on reaching the public health milestone of certification as wild polio free, but highlighted the importance of global solidarity to achieve the goal of global eradication and certification. Member States, including from polio-affected and high-risk countries, underscored the damage COVID-19 has caused to immunization systems around the world, leaving children at much more risk of preventable diseases such as polio. Delegates urged all stakeholders to follow WHO and UNICEF’s joint call for emergency action launched on 6 November to prioritize polio in national budgets as they rebuild their immunization systems in the wake of COVID-19, and the need to urgently mobilize an additional US$ 400 million for polio for emergency outbreak response over the next 14 months…” (11/11).