Second round of polio immunisation campaign underway in 13 counties, to prevent childhood disease

Nairobi, 19 July 2021 - The second round of a major polio immunisation campaign, led by the Government, UNICEF, WHO and partners, has begun this week. The campaign is targeting three million children across 13 counties of Kenya, after the virus was confirmed to be circulating in Garissa and Mombasa. The first round of the campaign in May 2021 reached 3.2 million children (93 percent) who will now receive their second dose. Those who missed the first round will also get their first dose.

A door-to-door campaign is taking place from 17 to 21 July in Garissa, Isiolo, Kajiado, Kiambu, Kilifi, Kitui, Lamu, Machakos, Mandera, Mombasa, Nairobi, Tana River and Wajir counties, as well as in the Dadaab refugee camps.

“The Government of Kenya is continuing to take urgent action to stop polio in its tracks and save children’s lives,” Cabinet Secretary for Health Mutahi Kagwe said. “After a successful first round of the polio vaccination campaign in May, we are now looking forward to finishing this important job in round two this month.”

Notes to editors (from release dated 21 May 2021)

The polio virus is highly contagious and can cause paralysis and lifelong disability, or even death. The Ministry of Health and authorities in the high-risk counties, are urging communities to report any child under the age of 15 who develops sudden weaknesses in their hands and/or legs.

“Polio is a devastating childhood disease and as long as one child has polio, no child is safe,” UNICEF Representative in Kenya Maniza Zaman said. “To eradicate polio, all children in all households must be immunised. UNICEF is urging every family in the affected areas to make sure children under the age of five are vaccinated.”

The World Health Organisation (WHO) is also supporting the campaign through operational funds and technical guidance. WHO has been at the core of supporting polio prevention through technical support with teams and staff working in the county’s health system to ensure high surveillance standards are kept. This includes doing active case search in health facilities, monitoring and evaluation, and facilitation of laboratory work.

“Polio poses a damaging and life-long risk to children,” WHO Representative to Kenya Dr Rudi Eggers said. “Our plan is to achieve and sustain a polio-free world and vaccination is one of our core eradication strategies. We appreciate the Government and partners for prioritizing and supporting this effort through this campaign and other efforts”. WHO support over the years has helped in sustaining surveillance standards at all times and detecting the presence of the dangerous virus, as happened recently, he added.

Wild polio was eradicated in Kenya in 2014 and is now eradicated worldwide in all but two countries: Pakistan and Afghanistan. However, another form of the polio virus that occurs in under-immunised communities with poor sanitation was detected earlier this year by health surveillance teams in Garissa and Mombasa. This virus mutates in the body of a vaccinated child and is then passed on through their faeces. This mutated virus can cause paralysis if it infects another child who has not been vaccinated.

Kenya remains at risk of polio due to low immunisation coverage resulting from Covid-19 interruptions, porous borders with high-risk countries and high population movements. Routine vaccination has also been disrupted due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Between 2018 and 2020, around 300,000 children in the 13 counties identified as high-risk had not had their three rounds of routine Polio vaccination, as part of their routine childhood immunisations.

“If even one child tests positive for polio, 200,000 other children are considered by the World Health Organization to be at risk of contracting the virus,” Cabinet Secretary for Health Mutahi Kagwe said. “We must now work together to reach every child in the 13 counties with immunisation, in order to eliminate polio in Kenya.”

The Government of Kenya is supported in this campaign by UNICEF, WHO, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), USAID and the Government of Canada.