The United States Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, has commended the government and people of Nigeria for attaining a wild poliovirus-free status after years of joint efforts to qualify Nigeria to be removed from the list of wild polio endemic countries.
The US envoy in a statement noted that since 2012, the US Center for Disease Control (CDC) and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) have invested approximately $150 million and $70 million, respectively, toward Nigeria’s polio eradication efforts. She said the agencies work in Nigeria at the state and local levels to strengthen surveillance, polio campaigns, polio outbreak response efforts, and routine immunization.
Ambassador Leonard, at an August 24 Town Hall meeting with Embassy staff and polio eradication stakeholders, noted that pointed out that the implementing partners include the African Field Epidemiology Network, Core Group Partners Program, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, UNICEF, and World Health Organization.
“We are proud of our partnership with Nigeria and cherish the cooperation that ensures the country has the technical expertise and resources required for success,” the envoy said in the statement.
“No country could have achieved this great feat without the support of its partners,” she said.
She added that the United States stands ready to continue its partnership with Nigeria as it consolidates and builds upon its successes in fighting polio, including strengthening routine immunization, and improving the health of children and their families.
The certification comes after four years without any reported cases of polio in Nigeria and following an in-depth review and acceptance of the country’s certification documentation.
Leonard said she is confident that Nigeria has strategies in place to ensure the gains made in the polio eradication efforts are not lost and that the momentum attained in achieving this certification continues.
She, however, warned that despite the certification, a resurgence of polio can still occur. She emphasized that it is therefore critical that the country’s disease surveillance system is sensitive enough to quickly detect and respond to diseases.
