Headlines

WHO DG Dr Tedros:  “Thank you Rotary and UK!”

WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus participated this week in a UK Parliamentary event on polio eradication, organized by Rotary UK, at the House of Commons.  “Thank you to Rotary and the UK for your unwavering and long-standing partnership in the global effort to eradicate polio.  Together with partners, we are very close to eradicating this crippling disease.”  More.

Integration in Pakistan – children protected against measles, rubella and polio

“Integrating polio drops in the measles-rubella campaign meant we used the opportunity to reach vulnerable populations with 3 essential vaccines, doubling our public health delivery on the spot.” Polio frontline worker Mahnoor Ali perfectly summarized the spirit that led Pakistan to administer the oral polio vaccine during the measles-rubella vaccination campaign supported by the World Health Organization (WHO) in late 2025. The result: in addition to protecting 34 million children from measles-rubella nationwide, over 19 million were also protected from paralytic polio across 88 high-risk districts.  More. 

Rotary at the heart of a polio-free world

During its quarterly face‑to‑face meeting on 3 March 2026, the Global Certification Commission Containment Working Group (GCC-CWG), was warmly welcomed to White Rock, near Vancouver BC, Canada, by the Rotary Club of White Rock—an inspiring example of Rotary’s grassroots leadership in global health. As the initiator of the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, Rotary continues to play a pivotal role alongside WHO, governments, UNICEF, CDC, Gavi the Vaccine Alliance and the Gates Foundation, in driving progress toward a polio‑free world.  More. 

Women leading polio outbreak response efforts across Africa

Every child protected from polio represents a conversation that worked, a door that opened, a mother reassured, a family reached. Behind each of those moments, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), in Ethiopia, in Nigeria, is a woman who is making it happen.  Across all three countries, when women are provided genuine authority, trained resources, and institutional recognition, vaccination coverage climbs. The approaches differ by context, culture, and need. The outcome is consistent.  More.

Latest IHR EC report published

The report from last month’s meeting of the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee on International Spread of Poliovirus has been published.  The effort remains a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.

Summary of new polioviruses this week: 

• Afghanistan:  four WPV1 cases
• Pakistan:  one WPV1 case and six WPV1-positive environmental samples
• Malawi:  two cVDPV2-positive environmental samples
• Nigeria:  two cVDPV3 cases