On 21 August Angola began the third round of its polio vaccination campaign, targeting 9.2 million children under the age of five. The drive ran for three days and aims to rapidly halt the circulation of the virus and strengthen children’s immunity.
According to the national director of Public Health, Helga Freitas, the children received two drops of the oral polio vaccine and, from six months of age, vitamin A as well. Vaccination was carried out door to door, at fixed posts and at outreach points, involving 72,305 health workers and volunteers.
The previous round, held in May, made it possible to vaccinate more than eight million children across the country. Synchronised campaigns were also held in the border areas with Namibia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, reaching more than nine million children.
The Ministry of Health appealed to parents to welcome the vaccination teams and called on local authorities, traditional and religious leaders, teachers, civil society and the media to help mobilise communities.
