Containment supporting groups
Containment Advisory Group
The Containment Advisory Group (CAG) acts as an advisory body to the Director-General of WHO, and makes recommendations on technical issues related to the implementation of the WHO Global Action Plan for Poliovirus Containment. Meeting reports of the CAG are available here.
Submissions on issues for the consideration of the Containment Advisory Group can be made using the CAG submission form.
Global and Regional Certification Commissions
The Global Commission for Certification of the Eradication of Poliomyelitis (GCC) is an independent body that oversees the work of Objective 3 – containment and certification. The GCC oversees the process for certifying the world as polio-free, reviews reports of the Regional Certification Commission and will ultimately issue a report to the WHO Director-General to certify that the circulation of wild polioviruses has been interrupted globally. The GCC, supported by the Containment Working Group, also provides oversight to poliovirus containment activities, and the certification process for facilities that will retain polioviruses after eradication.
Type 2 wild poliovirus was declared eradicated in September 2015, with the last virus detected in India in 1999. Type 3 wild poliovirus was declared eradicated in October 2019. It was last detected in November 2012. Only type 1 wild poliovirus remains.
The Regional Certification Commissions (RCCs) independently verify polio eradication for their region, and provide polio eradication reports to the GCC.
Containment Working Group
The Containment Working Group (CWG), under the Global Commission for the Certification of Poliomyelitis Eradication (GCC), reviews the national containment certification of poliovirus-essential facilities (PEFs) and make recommendations to the GCC. Its aim is to provide the required level of assurance that WHO Global Action Plan for Poliovirus Containment requirements are appropriately identified, implemented and monitored, following the Containment Certification Scheme (CCS).
