Egypt's Health Ministry: 13.8mn children receive polio vaccines

CAIRO - 30 March 2020: More than 13 million children have taken polio shots on the first two days of a national campaign to eliminate the disease in Egypt.

This is the second such campaign in 2021 to administer polio vaccines to 16.7 million children aging between one day and 5 years old for free.

About 13.8 million children have so far been jabbed, including 13,447 non-Egyptians, said Health Minister Hala Zayed Tuesday. The first two days of the campaign covered 84 percent of the targeted population, she noted.

Launched on March 28, the campaign is expected to last until March 31 in all Egyptian governorates, Zayed said.

Health Ministry spokesman Dr Khaled Megahed said the campaign, the second this year, is meant to boost societal immunity and maintain an Egypt free of polio. This is done as a proactive step, especially with the disease reportedly detected in a number of neighboring states and the East Mediterranean region, Megahed added.

The campaign is conducted in line with President Abdel Fattah El Sisi’s vision to upgrade the health sector and achieve the sustainable development goals, he noted.

Megahed said that 90,000 medical teams are giving the polio vaccination at health offices and medical units and centers.

Mobile teams are also dispatched to major squares and train stations, as well as around mosques, churches, clubs, markets and bus stations, to provide the service for free, the spokesman added.

Medical teams are knocking on doors of villages from 8.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. to guarantee all targeted children get the vaccine, Megahed said.