Preparations are underway to deploy teams in some regions for the start of national vaccination campaign against poliomyelitis.

The vaccination campaign will run from September 18 to 20, 2020 and from October 9 to 11, 2020, in 117 health districts located in the regions of Adamaoua, Center, East, Far North, Littoral and the North.

It is important to stress that any child who is not vaccinated against polio can become disabled throughout his life and thus become a burden on his family and his community.

The vaccination campaign comes just few weeks after Cameroon and 46 other African countries were certified wild poliovirus free after meeting the required standards expected by the African Regional Certification Committee, ARCC.

According to the Head of the Rose Leke, the certification does not mean the end of vaccination. She said the upcoming vaccination campaign is essential because Cameroon and the rest of the African countries need to continue to be on the alert in order to avoid another outbreak. Given that the Circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 is still present in some 16 countries, the risk of it spread to other African countries is still possible, she added.

Thus the upcoming vaccination campaign will take place in health facilities where children aged 0 to 23 months continue to receive oral polio vaccine (Vpo) and injectable polio vaccine (IPV) according to the vaccination schedule. Vaccination will also continue during campaigns after a risk assessment by the health authorities. The virus is certainly defeated, but the risk remains because the virus only affects children who are insufficiently vaccinated.