The world has slashed polio cases by over 99% in the past 35 years, but gaps in vaccination coverage still threaten to undo decades of progress, the World Health Organization (WHO) warned on World Polio Day, falling on 24 October. Back in 1988, polio paralyzed roughly 350,000 children annually. This year, only 36 cases have been reported so far—a massive win, but one that demands continued vigilance.
WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus urged countries to treat polio like they did smallpox. “Decades ago, the world overcame geopolitical and geographic barriers to end smallpox. Let’s do the same for polio. Let’s finish the job,” he said. The Global Polio Eradication Initiative, launched three decades ago and now led by WHO and partner organizations, has driven the dramatic drop in infections.
But certain regions are struggling. In Afghanistan, a ban on house-to-house vaccinations has left over one million children unreached since May 2018, particularly in the south. As a result, most of the country’s type 1 polio cases in 2019 and 2020 came from areas that vaccination teams couldn’t access. Europe’s WHO region has been polio-free since 2002, yet vaccination rates slipped in 2024, leaving more than 450,000 babies unprotected.
Ihor Perehinets, WHO Europe’s regional emergency director, warned that gaps in immunization put not just local children at risk, but threaten neighboring regions too. “We must not return to a time when polio regularly threatened lives and overwhelmed health systems,” he said. Dr. Catharina Boehme from WHO Southeast Asia called on governments to invest in surveillance, health systems, and immunization campaigns to protect every child.
The virus attacks the nervous system and can paralyze, mostly affecting children. Experts say the finish line is in sight—but only if countries stay committed.
