[UAE Today]The UAE leads international efforts to eradicate polio in the world

The UAE leads global efforts to eradicate polio, and the UAE’s polio campaign succeeded in overcoming the challenges resulting from the “Covid-19” pandemic, as the Corona virus stopped vaccination campaigns around the world, and the health community warned of the possibility of a crisis. New polio, and the UAE was the first to resume vaccination, and it reached more than 16 million children, and provided them with 28 million vaccination doses, between July and last September, and the UAE campaign succeeded in giving 483 million vaccinations to more than 86 million Pakistani children. Since its launch in 2014.

In detail, the efforts devoted by the UAE to eradicate polio were inspired by those foundations and ideals established by the father, the founder of the state, the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, and since 2011, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince Abu Dhabi Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, more than $ 250 million to support international efforts to eradicate polio, which reflects and confirms His Highness’s commitment to eradicating preventable diseases that negatively affect the poorest societies and the lack of health services around the world. Aid to millions of young and old to lead a healthy and dignified life.

Since 2014, the UAE has made many of its resources and expertise available on the ground in Pakistan, through the UAE’s polio vaccination campaign, by providing vaccines and aid to remote areas there, which were previously inaccessible.

In 2019, His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan hosted the declaration of pledges for the Global Initiative to Eradicate Polio, at the Reaching the Last Mile Forum, and raised more than $ 2.8 billion, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan is one of the supporters of the workers Health on the front lines of polio, with the HOPE Awards and the REACH Awards.

The UAE campaign to vaccinate against polio comes within the framework of the Emirati Project to Help Pakistan, which was launched based on the directives of His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, President of the State, and His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces With the aim of extending a hand of humanitarian aid and assistance to the Pakistani people, and supporting their development efforts towards achieving a better future.

Corona and polio

The events of this year have posed unprecedented challenges for efforts to eradicate polio at the global level, and the UAE campaign for polio vaccination, as the Corona virus has stopped vaccination campaigns around the world, while prominent leaders in the global health community have warned of the cause of disruption. Vaccination in a new crisis due to the outbreak of polio.

During this crucial period, the UAE campaign for polio vaccination mobilized efforts, and in July, it carried out the first vaccination campaign to resume after the Corona virus, with the aim of besieging the areas of the polio virus, which reached 60 cases this year in Pakistan.

A field plan was approved to target more than 766,000 children in high-security areas, whose children are the most threatened and vulnerable to infection with the virus.

The campaign was implemented in the midst of modern procedures and measures with high preventive standards, as more than 3465 vaccination teams and security personnel participated in its implementation, after receiving training courses to qualify them to perform the task, in light of field challenges and risks related to their protection and safety, and to ensure the protection of children targeted with vaccination from infection with the virus. Corona », and it has also been provided with personal protective equipment, including clothes, masks, gloves and sterilization materials, in addition to implementing a new media and social awareness plan to encourage parents and urge them to take the initiative to vaccinate their children and protect them from polio.

The precautionary measures for the vaccination teams, during the implementation of the campaign, included conducting comprehensive checks for them, ensuring their safety from infection with the “Corona” virus before participating in the campaign, preventing the participation of people over 50 years old in the campaign, as well as preventing the participation of any person with chronic diseases, and preventing them from touching Children directly during vaccination, protecting vaccines from touching from any other party, in addition to another preventive measure for parents of children related to sterilizing their hands and distributing free masks to them.

Since its launch, the campaign has provided 483 million vaccinations and reached 86 million children. The campaign reaches about 16 million Pakistani children every month.

Reducing the spread of epidemics

The UAE project to help Pakistan – within the initiative of His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the Armed Forces, to eradicate polio in the world – implemented the first polio vaccination campaign in the world in light of the outbreak of the new Corona virus. It targeted more than 766 thousand Pakistani children under the age of five years, and was able to deliver vaccines and vaccinate 722 thousand and 500 children against polio, with a success rate of 94.3%.

The campaign was implemented from 20 to 26 July last, and it represents a field translation of the leadership’s directives to strengthen global efforts aimed at limiting the spread of epidemics and preventing the negative health repercussions that children suffer in the affected areas of the world. With the help of needy and poor people, developing human development programs, giving attention to people and children in need of preventive health care, and protection from diseases and epidemics.

Fighting polio

The UAE has played a pioneering role in combating the spread of polio, and in cooperation with its partners it has actively contributed to the international efforts in this regard, and has provided many of its resources and expertise on the ground in Pakistan, through the UAE polio vaccination campaign. The designation of a World Polio Day aims to raise awareness of the need for concerted efforts to eradicate this disease completely from the world.

99% reduction in global polio incidence

Global statistics have confirmed that polio infection rates have decreased by 99%, all over the world since 1988, but the risk of the disease’s return remains, as the efforts of mankind have not succeeded in completely eliminating any disease except smallpox, so the eradication of polio will be a historic achievement. The efforts of the UAE campaign to vaccinate against polio will help accumulate experiences that support efforts to eradicate any other diseases in the future.

It is reported that the activities of the eighth World Polio Day will be held tomorrow.

International efforts to eradicate the disease are being made under the umbrella of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, a partnership between the government and private sectors, adopted by national governments in cooperation with five main partners: the World Health Organization, Rotary International, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (United States) and the United Nations United Childhood (UNICEF), and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

2.8

One billion dollars raised by the Global Polio Eradication Initiative in the last mile.

483

One million vaccination doses have been provided by the campaign to 86 million children since its launch.

766

A thousand children in high-risk areas were targeted by the vaccination campaign.

– The UAE carried out the first vaccination campaign against polio in the world, in light of the outbreak of “Corona”.

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