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New immunisation drive against polio

[Somalia] A child receives polio vaccine in Hargeysa, Somalia, June 2005. A nationwide immunisation campaign has been launched by the World Health Organisation (WHO) to protect the country’s children from life-long paralysis caused by the disease. Healt Jamal Abdi/IRIN
Immunisation coverage has improved
    NAIROBI

    A new round of polio immunisation is due to begin in Somalia on 20 February to stem the spread of the disease, which has infected more than 150 people across the country, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has said.

    "The continued spread of polio throughout Somalia is of major concern," UNICEF Somalia said in its latest monthly review.

    "There are currently 167 confirmed cases of polio [two in Sool, two in Bay region, 11 in Lower Shabelle and the rest in Benadir]," it added. "For 2006 alone, 21 cases of acute flaccid paralysis are pending lab confirmation."

    One round of sub-national immunisation days was held in southcentral Somalia in January.

    "The first cases of polio to re-emerge were in Mogadishu in September 2005 ending the country's three year status as polio-free," the review noted. "By the end of 2005 there were 362 cases of acute flaccid paralysis associated with polio."

    Polio is a highly infectious disease caused by a virus that affects mainly children under three years of age. It invades the nervous system and can cause total paralysis in a matter of hours.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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