Malanje- The representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Malanje, Tonduangu Kuezima Matias, on Thursday acknowledged the commitment of the Angolan government in the fight against polio and called on citizens to join the cause in order to block the chain of contagion.
Speaking at the opening of the polio vaccination campaign in the province to run until May 19, Matias reiterated the WHO's commitment to continue to support the Angolan government in this regard, with a view to increase the vaccination coverage rate.
Matias stressed that children's immunity to the poliovirus in the country is below 60 per cent, a situation that the WHO and other United Nations (UN) agencies want to reverse to prevent Angola from becoming vulnerable to the disease.
He also justified the need to increase vaccination coverage with the fact that the country has recorded four cases of type 2 poliovirus this year in the provinces of Luanda, Huambo and Lunda-Norte, in addition to the outbreak in the neighboring Democratic Republic of Congo.
Malanje deputy governor for Technical and Infrastructure sector, Duarte Ginga on his turn said Angola eradicated wild polio in 2015 and, since then, efforts have been made to maintain the country's polio-free status, through active searches in health facilities and communities, reinforcement of epidemiological surveillance and routine vaccination.
Children's immunity is still lower than desired, the politician said, having called for social mobilization to prevent the spread of the disease and the opportunity to praise the contribution that the WHO has made to eradicate the disease in the country.
The polio vaccination campaign in Malanje will take place on a door-to-door basis and is expected to cover 209,526 children between the ages of zero and five.
To this end, 1,789 technicians have been mobilized, including vaccinators, mobilizes and registrars, as well as 246 doses of vaccine, 90 vehicles and 201 motorbikes, as disclosed by the head of the Provincial Department of Public Health, Maria Brandão.
Also known as infantile paralysis, polio is a highly contagious viral disease caused by the poliovirus. It mainly affects children under the age of five and can result in permanent paralysis. ACC/PBC/DAN/AMP
