AFRICA - Although polio outbreaks are still possible the disease has been eradicated in 10 countries in central and west Africa

Rome (Fides Service) - Since 1988, efforts to eradicate polio has reduced the number of cases by over 99%, from 350,000 in 1988 to 1,469 in 2005.
Public health experts confirm that serious outbreaks of polio in 10 Africa countries Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Côte d'Ivoire, Ghana, Guinea, Mali and Togo, were successfully neutralised .
Since mid 2003 polio completely paralysed 200 children, but since June this year no new cases have been registered. The 10 countries declared free of polio were included in a vaccination campaign in 23 countries to vaccinate100 million children with multiple doses of anti-polio in the past 18 months.
However experts are still cautious and to render minimum risk in 28 countries, including the ten declared polio free, they have launched a maintenance programme with synchronised vaccination for over 100, million children between November and December .
In Nigeria, India, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Niger and Egypt polio is still endemic, but the virus continues to spread even in countries where the disease has been eradicated: in 11 of these Somalia, Indonesia, Yemen, Angola, Ethiopia, Chad, Sudan, Mali, Eritrea, Cameroon and Nepal, new cases were reported in 2004 and 2005. (AP) (11/11/2005 Agenzia Fides; Righe:24; Parole:277)