South Sudan rolls out polio campaign to vaccinate 3.3 million children

Juba: South Sudan, along with two UN agencies and other partners, launched a nationwide campaign on Monday to vaccinate 3.3 million children aged 0 to 59 months against polio using the new Oral Polio Vaccine Type 2.

The campaign, led by the Ministry of Health with support from the World Health Organization (WHO), the United Nations Children's Fund, and other partners, is in response to the recent confirmation of 12 cases of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV2) across eight counties in South Sudan.

Minister of Health Yolanda Awel Deng said that the campaign aims to ensure that every child in South Sudan is not only reached with these vaccines but also protected against the disease.

The resurgence of vaccine-derived poliomyelitis was a shock and a significant setback to the ministry's achievements, particularly after the country was declared wild polio-free in 2020, Deng said in a joint statement issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

According to the WHO, cVDPV2 cases can occur when the weakened live virus in the oral polio vaccine spreads among people who are not fully immunized, potentially causing paralysis, Xinhua news agency reported.

The ministry said that the crisis has affected population movements and displacement in South Sudan, making it more challenging to reach children in need of vaccinations.

It added that multiple doses of the vaccine will provide protection against both wild and circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses.

In December 2023, South Sudan confirmed an outbreak of cVDPV2 and declared it a public health emergency.

Hamida Lasseko, UNICEF's representative in South Sudan, said that every child has the right to grow up free from preventable diseases, noting that polio is one of the most dangerous yet entirely preventable illnesses.

"UNICEF reiterates its commitment to supporting the Ministry of Health and partners in delivering vaccines to every part of South Sudan so that no child is left vulnerable to polio," Lasseko said.