Ondjiva - The United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) representative in Angola, Antero Pina, highlighted Friday in southern Cunene province, the Angolan government’s commitment towards the promotion of actions to secure the health of children.
Speaking on the sidelines of the second phase of the National Polio Vaccination Campaign to run until October 16, the UNICEF official praised the efforts undertaken by the Angolan government and partners to inoculate children under five throughout the country.
Antero Pina underscored that the continuous actions implemented by the Angolan government has been crucial to ensure that all children are protected against diseases through vaccination campaigns.
The UNICEF official underlined that the action represents an important step towards consolidating the initiative to eradicate polio in Angola, having praised the determination and leadership shown by the government.
Pina recalled that Angola successfully eradicated the circulation of the wild polio virus in 2015 and has been working since then to maintain its status as a polio-free country, carrying out active searches for cases in communities and health units, routine vaccination campaigns and strengthening epidemiological surveillance.
The UNICEF representative warned of the risk of importing cases, both wild and vaccine-derived, due to the circulation of the virus in countries in the southern African region and the low rate of routine immunisation.
The official reaffirmed the commitment of the United Nations agencies to continue supporting Angola in this crucial challenge to immunise all children and eradicate polio from the world, with the aim to build a more equitable, sustainable and inclusive society.
UNICEF and the World Health Organisation have collaborated with the Angola Health Ministry, providing technical, financial and logistical support to protect children.
Antero Pina called for the involvement of families, partners and local authorities to ensure that all children are inoculated.
The campaign aims to inoculate 5.4 million children under the age of five in the country. FI/LHE/OHA/AMP
