July 24 marked one year since the last reported case of wild polio in Nigeria. This is a significant milestone for the largest country by population in Africa and, historically, a major reservoir of the virus.
Tag archives for Polio
A Vaccine to Help End the AIDS Pandemic
A new energy animates the hallways of the Washington Convention Center this week, as leaders and advocates commit to a goal once thought impossible: ending the AIDS pandemic. Read more >>
A Triumph of Coordination: To the Last Case in India and Beyond
Ellyn Ogden has coordinated USAID’s polio eradication initiative since 1997 and is a frequent visitor to India. Western Uttar Pradesh was once seen as the world’s largest reservoir of polio virus. Four districts, namely Moradabad, Bareilly, Rampur and Badaun, were considered the ‘Hot 4’ and for many years, people speculated that the last polio cases […]
USAID in the News
Weekly Briefing (1/16/2012 – 1/20/2012) January 17: The GlobalPost highlighted India’s progress in its fight to end polio and noted that the country recently marked one year since its last confirmed case of polio. The news outlet interviewed Ellyn Ogden, USAID’s worldwide polio eradication coordinator. In the published interview, Ogden discusses India’s achievement and the global outlook to end polio. January 18: On Wednesday, at the University of Delaware-Wilmington, USAID Administrator Dr. Rajiv Shah joined Senator […]
A Triumph of Coordination: Eradicating Polio from India
Ellyn Ogden has coordinated USAID’s polio eradication initiative since 1997 and is a frequent visitor to India. The news out of India this week marking 12 months with no confirmed case of polio is indeed a landmark event. I have had the good fortune of working with the Pulse Polio Program, as the Polio Eradication […]
Stopping the Spread of Polio in Central Asia
When my daughter Caitlin cried getting her polio booster, I was able to staunch the flow of her tears by describing the amazing work USAID/Central Asian Republics did in Tajikistan last spring when USAID’s rapid response and advocacy with the host governments and other donors resulted in more than 7 million children getting vaccinated (that’s […]
Polio Immunization Efforts Showing Positive Results in Southern Sudan
USAID, the United Nations, the Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS), and other international partners launched a polio immunization campaign March 28 in southern Sudan, where the crippling disease re-emerged in 2008. “Due to the efforts of the GOSS, development partners, and people of southern Sudan, the outbreak that re-emerged in South Sudan in 2008 has […]
Paving the Way for a Measles-Free Nigeria
Guest Post by: Andrea Gay, Executive Director of Children’s Health at the United Nations Foundation For the last ten years, I have seen thousands of children cry after being pricked by needle for a vaccination against measles –a deadly disease that is preventable by one quick, albeit painful, shot. I witnessed it again this week […]
U.S. and Russia Further Cooperation In The Fight Against Polio
While in Moscow last summer, I visited the M.P. Chumakov Institute of Poliomyelitis and saw the history of collaboration between the U.S. and Russia on polio research. I saw opportunity to advance our cooperation to address new challenges and work with Russian experts to eradicate polio for good enabled by the Obama Administration ‘reset’ policy […]
