South Sudan launches nationwide polio vaccination campaign

JUBA – South Sudan’s Ministry of Health intends to administer the oral polio vaccine to over 3.3 million children aged 0-59 months, an official has revealed.

The door-to-door campaign, starting today, is part of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) and UNICEF.

Authorities told Reuters that the Polio vaccination novel Oral will be conducted in ten states and three administrative areas, targeting 3.3 million children nationwide.

Dr. George Awzenio Legge, Extended Program Immunization (EPI) Director in the Ministry of Health, said the campaign is a response to the outbreak of the disease in some parts of the country.

“This campaign, we are targeting 3.3 million children all over the country, [there are] 80 counties that have been targeted for this campaign,” said Legge.

“When there is an outbreak like this, because we are not able to reach or all the mothers not able to bring their children for the vaccinations, this is why we are doing a campaign,” he added.

The EPI director explained that mothers are supposed to take their children to health facilities but because they are not able to come, the health ministry decided to do house-to-house vaccinations to raise infants’ immunity.

He urged parents and guardians to cooperate with the polio vaccination team, adding that every child must be vaccinated to stop the ailment.

Besides, Dr. Humphrey Karamagi, WHO Representative for South Sudan, said, “This vaccination campaign is an important step in our mission to ensure polio, a disease that can be completely prevented, doesn’t threaten any child’s life.

This effort shows our strong commitment to ensuring that no child is at risk of polio.”

UNICEF Representative in South Sudan, Hamida Lasseko, said, “Every child has the right to grow up free from preventable diseases, and polio is one of the most dangerous yet entirely avoidable 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,” she added.

Polio [poliomyelitis] is a highly infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. It attacks the nervous system and commonly the muscles of the arms or legs – and can cause paralysis or even death.

In December 2023, South Sudan confirmed an outbreak of circulating Vaccine-Derived Polio Virus Type 2 (cVDPV2) and declared it a ‘Public Health Emergency’.

To combat the resurgence of poliomyelitis in the country, two nationwide polio vaccination rounds were successfully conducted in February and April 2024, vaccinating 3.3 million children aged 0 to 59 months during each of the two rounds.