UN Polio Vaccination Campaign in Gaza to Continue During Humanitarian Pause – World Issues
UNITED NATIONS, Aug 29 (IPS) – A multi-agency UN campaign to vaccinate against polio in Gaza is expected to begin this weekend. It will do so under continued constraints on aid operations and mobility, but with an assurance from Israel to stop short of fighting for the campaign to continue.
Rik Peeperkorn, Representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Palestine, briefed journalists on Thursday, August 29, 2024, about the upcoming polio vaccination campaign. The campaign will have two rounds, with the first round starting on September 1.
There will be an interval of four weeks between the first and second doses. More than 1.26 million doses of polio vaccine have arrived in Gaza, with room for an additional 400,000 doses. The campaign, which is coordinated by WHO, UNICEF, UNRWA and the Palestinian Ministry of Health, will aim to give two drops of the type 2 polio vaccine (nOPV2) to at least 640,000 children under the age of ten.
“It is important that we reach 90% vaccination in each round,” said Peeperkorn. “That’s needed. Basically, you need 90 percent to stop the outbreak, spread in Gaza and stop the spread of polio around the world.”
The first round of the campaign will be carried out in three areas in three-day phases: from the center of Gaza, then to the south of Gaza, and to the north of Gaza. Under the continuous monitoring of the situation, one or two days may be added to extend each period in the areas, according to Peeperkorn. Even at this time, there is still pressure to do the campaign as quickly as possible to ensure the highest possible coverage.
Health centers have been built so families can reunite with their children. More than 2180 staff and volunteers have been trained to manage this mission, and mobile teams have been established to visit groups that may not be able to visit the facilities.
“We want to make sure that we have three days of the best access, that families can bring their children to those designated places,” Peeperkorn said. “We will go out and reach with mobile teams.”
Since the campaign was announced at the beginning of August, the WHO has called for a temporary suspension so that operations can be carried out safely. According to Peeperkorn, an agreement has been reached with the Office of the Co-ordinator of Government Activities in the Areas (COGAT), where the suspension of aid will be effective for nine hours from 6am to 3pm.
Under the agreement, the campaign must be carried out within a specified time. Peeperkorn said the temporary suspension would be respected and he had been given assurances by Israeli authorities that evacuation orders would not be issued during the campaign.
“I want to emphasize that without a temporary suspension, the delivery of the campaign – which is already being carried out under constraints in a complex environment – will not be possible,” said Peeperkorn.
When asked how confident he was about the success of the campaign, Peeperkorn replied: “I think this is the way forward. I won’t say this is the right way forward, but this is the effective way forward. Doing nothing would be really bad. . We have to stop this transfer to Gaza… We are rational this way and everyone plays fair.”
“Yes, all parties must stick to this. We must make sure that every day we can carry out this campaign in this time to help people.”
Gaza and the West Bank have a high vaccination rate for the entire population. Peeperkorn noted that the vaccination rate of more than 95 percent in recent years was much higher than in other high-income countries.
But since the outbreak of the ongoing war in October 2023, polio vaccination has dropped from 99 percent in 2022 to less than 90 percent in the first quarter of 2024.
Over the past ten months, the blockade of humanitarian aid, electricity and water transport services has seen the collapse of health care and sanitation systems in Gaza. The lack of clean water and sanitation in Gaza has seen an increase in respiratory diseases and infections.
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© Inter Press Service (2024) — All Rights ReservedOriginal source: Inter Press Service
