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Facts on Children

Frequently Used Numbers for Polio Eradication:

Polio cases in 1988: 350,000
Polio caseload: the number of polio cases fell to just under 700 reported cases at the end of 2003 – a greater than 99 per cent reduction in case.
Polio cases in 2006: 2001
Polio cases in 2006 in endemic countries: 1873
Polio cases in 2006 in India: 674
Polio cases in 2006 in Pakistan: 40
Polio cases in 2006 in Afghanistan: 31
Polio cases in 2006 in Nigeria: 1128
Polio cases in 2006 in non-endemic countries: 128
Number of polio endemic countries in 1988: more than 125
Number of polio endemic countries today: four – Afghanistan, India, Niger, Pakistan
Since 1988, some two billion children around the world have been immunized backed by an international investment of US$ 3 billion.
Global funding gap for 2007-2008: 575 million as of March 2007

Updated: April 2007