News Releases

Bujumbura – Burundi’s health authorities today launched the country’s first national polio vaccination campaign since 2011, targeting nearly 3 million children under seven years of age following the first alerts of circulating poliovirus type 2 in more than three decades.

Brazzaville/Kinshasa - The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) today launches its first major immunization campaign using the novel polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2), to protect children against the devastating consequences of the virus.

Brazzaville/Accra – While Africa has made significant progress in the fight against polio, the World Health Organization (WHO) is prioritizing the strengthening of in-country laboratory capacity in recognition of the critical role of high-quality data in the detection of poliovirus outbreaks.

In partnership with the Global Polio Laboratory Network (GPLN), WHO is capacitating countries including Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya and Senegal in poliovirus sequencing techniques.