Rwanda: Who Declares Five African Countries Polio-Free

Five African countries have stopped the spread of poliovirus type 2, the World Health Organization (WHO) has said.

Outbreaks in Burundi, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, DR Congo and Uganda have now been officially closed following independent assessments conducted between January and June 2026.

The assessments reviewed disease surveillance, laboratory and epidemiological data, vaccination campaigns and population immunity. The teams found that transmission had stopped, which was later confirmed by the WHO Regional Office for Africa.

"This is an important milestone, but it is not the end of the journey. Continued vigilance, strong surveillance and high immunisation coverage remain essential to protect children and prevent future outbreaks," said Dr Mohamed Janabi, WHO Regional Director for Africa.

The five countries used different approaches to contain the virus, but vaccination and surveillance were central to their responses.

In DR Congo, the last poliovirus detection was reported in December 2023. Health authorities followed this with vaccination campaigns and efforts to maintain surveillance and close immunity gaps in high-risk areas.

Burundi declared its circulating poliovirus type 2 outbreak in March 2023 and stepped up routine vaccination and surveillance. Targeted vaccination campaigns, epidemiological investigations and environmental surveillance were also used to track the virus.

Uganda intensified its response after poliovirus was detected in May 2024, strengthening surveillance and coordination between national and local health authorities.

Ghana combined disease surveillance and rapid outbreak response with investment in laboratory capacity. Ghana and Uganda both upgraded their laboratories earlier this year, improving their ability to detect poliovirus and other vaccine-preventable diseases.

Guinea-Bissau has recorded no poliovirus detection since July 2021. Its response included targeted vaccination campaigns aimed at underserved communities and stronger disease surveillance.

WHO said the outbreak closures do not rule out new detections or importations of poliovirus. Madagascar recently detected the virus after an earlier outbreak had been closed.

The WHO African Region has also invested in its polio laboratory network to improve testing. The upgrades made in 2025 have increased diagnostic capacity and shortened the time needed to identify the virus.

Countries in Africa have upgraded their surveillance and laboratory systems to detect poliovirus faster. The region upgraded its polio laboratory network in 2025, making it easier to test samples and identify the virus sooner.

Health teams are using mapping tools to find communities missed during vaccination campaigns and track population movements in border and hard-to-reach areas.

"Every outbreak closed means more children protected from a disease that can cause lifelong paralysis," said Mike McGovern, chair of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative's Polio Oversight Board and Rotary International's International PolioPlus Committee.

Polio is a highly infectious disease that can cause irreversible paralysis. There is no cure for it, but vaccination can prevent it.

An outbreak is considered closed after an independent Outbreak Response Assessment team finds that transmission linked to it has stopped, followed by a review by the WHO Regional Office for Africa.

Rwanda was declared polio-free in 2004, after the country reported its last case of wild poliovirus in 1993.

Read the original article on New Times.