Freetown, 24 July 2025 – Sierra Leone has concluded a two-day virtual training aimed at strengthening the capacity of its national polio committees, as part of a wider regional effort spearheaded by the World Health Organization (WHO) Regional Office for Africa. The training, which ended today, targeted members of the National Certification Committee (NCC), National Polio Expert Committee (NPEC), National Task Force (NTF), and their secretariat.

The training falls within a broader WHO-led initiative, launched between May and June 2025, to ensure that all committee members across the WHO African Region are adequately oriented on the updated Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) Strategy 2022–2026 (now extended to 2029), new certification requirements, and reporting tools including modalities for introducing the electronic Annual Update Report (e-AUR).

Sierra Leone’s session marks another step forward in consolidating national preparedness, documentation, and surveillance efforts amid ongoing polio variant outbreaks across Africa. As of March 2025, 23 countries in the region are managing circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) outbreaks.

Delivering opening remarks, WHO Country Representative Dr. George Ameh acknowledged the critical roles played by the three national polio committees in Sierra Leone over the years.

“I congratulate you all as members of the three committees for the vital roles you have played over the years in moving the Polio Eradication Initiative forward in Sierra Leone,” he said.

“While the country ended the transmission of cVDPV2 in the 2024 outbreak, it remains at high risk particularly given the recent detection of cVDPV3 in neighbouring Guinea. This calls for greater surveillance, monitoring, and sustained documentation efforts. WHO remains committed to continue supporting the national committees despite the current global funding challenges.”

Speaking on behalf of the AFRO Polio Eradication Coordinator, Dr. Samafilan Ainan welcomed participants and acknowledged the collaborative commitment between national experts and the regional team.

“Your presence here today reflects our shared commitment to eradicating polio in the country and in the region through collaboration and scientific integrity,” he said.

“As we come together, let’s use this opportunity to exchange ideas, strengthen partnerships, and move forward in advocating for eradication at national and regional levels. This is a learning process, and we thank you for your engagement.”

The training provided practical guidance on preparing and submitting national certification reports, with emphasis on quality, timeliness, and completeness. It also covered the roles and responsibilities of committee members, update on key indicators of GPSAP 2025 - 2026 and introduction to the use of the e-AUR platform for improved reporting compliance.

Chair of the National Polio Committee, Dr. Muctarr Jalloh, expressed appreciation for the training and reaffirmed the committee’s commitment to meet certification standards.

“This workshop is something I was personally looking forward to, and I’m glad to have participated,” Dr. Jalloh stated. “It is a learning process, and I believe we are all walking away with new ideas and renewed inspiration to continue our important work.”

Reflecting on the committee’s performance, he added: “I acknowledge the delay in our report submission and take full responsibility for that. Moving forward, we commit to addressing the pending documentation and continuing close collaboration with WHO.”

The training was conducted in English via Zoom and coordinated by WHO’s Polio Eradication Programme team in AFRO, in collaboration with Inter-Country Support Teams (ISTs), WHO Country Offices, and GPEI partners. With Sierra Leone’s session now complete, the country is better positioned to uphold the high certification standards needed to maintain a polio-free status and protect future generations from the devastating disease.