Headlines:

• The Global Commission for Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication (GCC) met 21-22 February in Amman to review progress towards interrupting WPV1 transmission in endemic Pakistan and Afghanistan, implementation of the GPEI’s Global Surveillance Action Plan, and to hear from the six regional certification commissions on current priorities and issues. A report from the meeting including GCC recommendations will be posted on the GPEI website in the coming weeks. Read more…

• In the polio eradication programme, women are forces to be reckoned with. From the doorstep to the lab, they play important and integral roles at all levels of the polio programme. To mark International Women’s Day, we got the perspectives of four women from the WHO Eastern Mediterranean Region who tap into digital innovations in WHO-supported laboratories to shape decision-making and spur swift action.

• The GPEI has published two statements on polio transmission in Afghanistan and Pakistan, and Somalia and Yemen following the seventh meeting of the Regional Subcommittee on Polio Eradication and Outbreaks held on 28 February. The statements are available here and here.

• “The Government of Mozambique has shown strong leadership in the response to polio, ensuring that all eligible children are reached and protected with the vaccine through effective immunization campaigns,” – Dr Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Regional Director for Africa, during a visit to Mozambique. Read more…

Summary of new polioviruses this week:

• Chad: one cVDPV2 case and one positive environmental sample

• DR Congo: 10 cVDPV1 cases and 17 cVDPV2 cases

• Israel: one cVDPV2 case

• Madagascar: five cVDPV1 cases

• Nigeria: one cVDPV2 case and six positive environmental samples

Source: Global Polio Eradication Initiative