Burkina Faso recently conducted its first mass polio immunization campaign since mass immunization was suspended in March to comply with COVID-19 physical distancing guidelines, vaccinating 174 304 children under five years of age in two districts while observing COVID-19 infection prevention and control measures.
As immunization campaigns resume, WHO teams have developed guidance for frontline workers to ensure their safety and that of the children and their families. All vaccinators and health care workers involved have been trained on maintaining physical distancing while conducting vaccinations.
The national COVID-19 Committee provided a total of 41 250 masks and 200 litres of hand sanitizers to the 2000 frontline workers who took part in the immunization campaign.
Parents and caregivers expressed some hesitation to vaccinate their children for fear of contracting COVID-19, leading to a 10% drop in vaccination rates, according to WHO teams in the country. But waiting for the COVID-19 pandemic to be contained to resume immunization activities would have a detrimental effect on children’s health.
The WHO African Region set up an inter-agency Rapid Response Team in September 2019 to mobilise responses to circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus outbreaks in the region within 72 hours. The programme’s teams have been working non-stop across the region to ensure that, in addition to supporting the COVID-19 response, they continue essential disease surveillance and planned for the eventual resumption of polio outbreak response.
Plans include conducting three immunization campaigns in affected areas within three months, with the first round conducted within the first 14 days. The Rapid Response Team has succeeded in ending three outbreaks in Kenya, Mozambique and Niger.