Eliminating polio

The Western Pacific Region was certified polio free on 29 October 2000. Since then, the Region has experienced several polio events and outbreaks due to importation of wild poliovirus or emergence of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus. Thanks to the rigorous efforts of public health workers, all events and outbreaks were rapidly responded to and stopped.

Maintaining polio-free status is not simply about reacting to outbreaks following an importation; it also includes taking preventive actions such as conducting risk assessments to identify high-risk areas and conducting special preventive activities in these populations, strengthening routine immunization to ensure high population immunity, strengthening surveillance to ensure immediate detection of a wild or vaccine-related poliovirus, and having a solid outbreak response protocol.

WHO Western Pacific Regional Office supports Member States to:

• Sustain high-level population immunity against poliovirus through vaccination
• Withdraw oral polio vaccine (OPV) from use and immunize populations with inactivated polio vaccine (IPV).
• Sustain highly sensitive polio surveillance systems and the Regional Polio Laboratory Network
• Ensure sustainable domestic funding for polio essential functions
• Be fully prepared for and promptly and thoroughly respond to polio events and outbreaks
• Fully implement GAP III