Five African countries have closed their type 2 polio outbreaks — and 168 million (168,000,000) children got a polio vaccine dose this year

Behind the figures are health workers travelling long distances, community leaders building trust, and parents bringing their children forward. In his World Polio Day message, WHO Regional Director for Africa Dr Mohamed Janabi confirmed that independent assessments this year closed the poliovirus type 2 outbreaks in Burundi, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, the Republic of the Congo and Uganda. Between January and September 2026, more than 168 million children across 22 African countries received at least one dose of polio vaccine through 55 campaign rounds — including coordinated March campaigns in Angola, DR Congo and Namibia that protected more than 10 million children.

SDG 3 · Good health and well-being — Mechanism: institutional program