Public Health Emergency status
IHR Public Health Emergency of International Concern
Temporary Recommendations to Reduce International Spread of Poliovirus
On 5 May 2014 the WHO Director-General declared the international spread of poliovirus in 2014 a Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC) under the International Health Regulations (IHR 2005), issued Temporary Recommendations to reduce the international spread of poliovirus, and requested a reassessment of this situation by the Emergency Committee every three months. The 35th meeting of the Emergency Committee was held in May 2023.
Based on the committee’s advice and the reports made by affected States Parties, the Director-General extended the following Temporary Recommendations under the IHR (2005), effective May 2023. The committee’s full report is available here.
At a glance
States infected with WPV1, cVDPV1 or cVDPV3, with potential risk of international spread
WPV1
- Afghanistan (most recent detection 3 April 2023)
- Malawi (most recent detection 19 November 2021)
- Mozambique (most recent detection 10 August 2022)
- Pakistan (most recent detection 21 February 2023)
cVDPV1
- Madagascar (most recent detection 1 March 2023)
- Mozambique (most recent detection 27 February 2023)
- Malawi (most recent detection 1 December 2022)
- Democratic Republic of the Congo (most recent detection 6 March 2023)
- Congo (most recent detection 15 October 2022)
States infected with cVDPV2, with or without evidence of local transmission:
- Algeria
- Benin
- Botswana
- Burundi
- Cameroon
- Canada
- Central African Republic
- Chad
- Côte d’Ivoire
- Democratic Republic of the Congo
- Djibouti
- Egypt
- Ghana
- Indonesia
- Israel
- Malawi
- Mali
- Mozambique
- Niger
- Nigeria
- Somalia
- Sudan
- Togo
- United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland
- United States of America
- Yemen
- Zambia
States no longer infected with WPV1 or cVDPV, but remain vulnerable to re-infection by WPV or cVDPV
| 1. Burkina Faso | most recent detection 28 December 2021 |
| 2. Eritrea | most recent detection 2 March 2022 |
| 3. Ethiopia | most recent detection 1 April 2022 |
| 4. Gambia | most recent detection 9 September 2021 |
| 5. Guinea | most recent detection 11 August 2021 |
| 6. Guinea-Bissau | most recent detection 26 July 2021 |
| 7. Liberia | most recent detection 28 May 2021 |
| 8. Mauritania | most recent detection 15 December 2021 |
| 9. Senegal | most recent detection 17 January 2022 |
| 10. Sierra Leone | most recent detection 1 June 2021 |
| 11. Tajikistan | most recent detection 25 July 2021 |
| 12. Uganda | most recent detection 2 November 2021 |
| 13. Ukraine | most recent detection 24 December 2021 |
Polio-free countries
While there are no specific IHR Temporary Recommendations for travellers from polio free countries, those travelling to polio-affected countries are advised to consult International Travel and Health
Related Links
For travellers: Frequently-asked questions [pdf]
Translations: Français | Español | عربي
Download the International Certificate of Vaccination or Prophylaxis
Current global polio case count
International Health Regulations portal (secured-access for national IHR focal point)
