Brussels: Europe and the Arabs
Today, October 24, is World Polio Day. On this occasion, a statement was issued by the European Commission in Brussels, which included statements by the Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, Stella Kyriakides, the Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Orbellinen, and the Director of the European Center for Disease Prevention and Control, Dr. Andrea Ammon, and it said:
“Poliomyelitis remains an international threat to health. It is a threat that we can confront, and we have the preventive tool for it. The European Union has been polio-free for 20 years thanks to the mass vaccination we have achieved against it. But the recent discovery of vaccine-derived poliovirus and cases of polio in Europe and the United States are a stark reminder that we must remain vigilant.
As long as unvaccinated populations remain in European countries, we risk that the virus will re-emerge in Europe. Polio has severe health consequences. To reduce the risks of re-emergence and sustained transmission of this disease, it is essential to maintain high EU-level vaccination coverage in the general population and to increase vaccine uptake in the immunocompromised population. The COVID-19 pandemic has affected our health prevention measures. Coupled with misinformation and misinformation about the importance of vaccination, many children have unfortunately missed out on receiving a life-saving vaccination.
Therefore, to follow up on any potential return of polio, we call on Member States to review their vaccination coverage data and to address any gaps in the immunity of their populations. We also call on Member States to ensure that monitoring systems are in place to identify the spread of the virus.
Globally, we must continue our work to eradicate polio once and for all, by closing the gaps where the disease is still endemic in countries, such as Afghanistan and Pakistan. UNHCR supports global eradication efforts by strengthening immunization systems and supporting vaccination. In the past years, the European Union has mobilized €110 million to combat polio in most affected countries, including Afghanistan, and in cooperation with international partners such as UNICEF, WHO and GAVI.
Until polio is eradicated worldwide, no one is safe. On this World Polio Day, we call on everyone who has not been vaccinated, or whose children have missed their scheduled vaccinations, to seek immunization as soon as possible. Vaccination saves lives.”