• Efforts to eradicate polio have faced significant challenges, despite effective vaccination and surveillance strategies.

• In Somalia, ongoing civil unrest since 1991 has severely disrupted public health initiatives, resulting in low vaccination coverage—47% for OPV and 42% for IPV.

• From January 2017 to the present, 39 cases of circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus type 2 (cVDPV-2) have been reported across 14 of 20 regions, with 87% of cases occurring in the politically unstable South-Central regions.

• Approximately one in six children under five years old remains inaccessible for vaccination.

• Through AFP surveillance, there were 1,921 cases of non-polio acute flaccid paralysis (NPAFP), with 231 children unvaccinated, 95% of whom were from the South-Central region. 

• Environmental surveillance from 2018 to 2023 indicated that 90% of poliovirus detections occurred in Banadir state. 

• The WHO, through regular vaccination campaigns and supplementary immunization activities, strives to improve coverage and address these challenges. 

• To enhance vaccination efforts in areas with stringent security constraints, priorities include humanitarian aid and quality improvement measures. 

• Strengthening vaccination programs in these regions is crucial to achieving polio eradication and preventing further outbreaks in Somalia.

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