- The World Health Organisation has declared Gabon a “polio-free country”, given the lack of new reported or suspected cases in the central African country.
- According to a WHO statement obtained, the UN health agency nonetheless recommended taking the necessary steps to continue monitoring for possible signs of the disease.
- Polio is a highly-infectious viral disease which mainly affects young children and can result in permanent paralysis. There is no cure and it can only be prevented through immunisation.
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Cases of polio have decreased by 99% since 1988, when polio was endemic in 125 countries and 350 000 cases were recorded worldwide.
- Now the disease is endemic only in Afghanistan and Pakistan, where the WHO recorded four cases this year — two in each country. Last year, there were 37 cases globally.
