In 1988, the international community united under the leadership of the World Health Organization with the goal of eradicating polio. World Polio Day, which falls on 24 October, aims to raise awareness about the progress made and the challenges that remain to stop its spread.
Polio can invade the nervous system and cause paralysis, most often in children.
Cases have dropped, but the fight must continue
“Decades ago, the world overcame geopolitical and geographic barriers to eradicate smallpox. Let’s do the same for polio. Let’s finish the jobsaid Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
Three decades ago, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative was created and is now under the leadership of the World Health Organization and other non-US organizations and governments.
Since the launch of the initiative, the number of polio cases has decreased by more than 99%, with only 36 cases of the virus reported so far in 2025.
However, the World Health Organization says certain regions of the world are still struggling to eradicate polio, and regions that have succeeded in doing so should continue to support public health authorities in disease surveillance and prevention.
Dr. Katharina Böhme, who heads the World Health Organization in Southeast Asia, called on member states to recommit to immunization campaigns and invest in surveillance and health systems.
“Together, we can protect every child from polio, everywhere – and build a healthier, more resilient future for all,” she said.
Gaps in immunization coverage
While the WHO European region achieved polio-free status in 2002 and has remained free of endemic spread of the virus since then, vaccination coverage in the region declined in 2024, leaving more than 450,000 children unprotected.
In Afghanistan, a ban on house-to-house immunization has resulted in more than one million children in southern regions being lost to polio vaccination campaigns since May 2018, according to the WHO Polio Eradication Strategy 2022-2026.
As a result, in 2019 and 2020 respectively, 90% and 75% of type 1 polio cases in Afghanistan originated in areas that are not currently accessible for vaccination.
“Gaps in immunization coverage leave children vulnerable and pose a risk to the health security of our region and beyond.
“We should not return to a time when polio regularly threatened people’s lives and overwhelmed health systemssaid Ihor Perehents, WHO Regional Emergency Director for Europe.
