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PRESS RLEASE: INJECTABLE POLIO VIRUS VACCINE MOB UP CAMPAIGN
The Ministry of Health will be conducting a mop up vaccination campaign of the injectable polio virus vaccine for children aged 4 months to 5 years, from the 12th – 16th December 2022. This campaign will be targeting children who have missed the vaccine in all the districts across the country.
Botswana recently started environmental surveillance of polio virus after detecting a positive sample of a circulating Vaccine Derived Polio virus type 2 (cVDP2) in a sewage plant in Gaborone. This meant that unvaccinated children are at high risk of polio infection.
The ministry has also noted low coverage of both the oral polio vaccine and the injectable polio vaccine and is therefore, planning this mop up campaign. This will be a facility based campaign, with some outreach activities. Facilities will also use this campaign to catch up on other missed under 5 years vaccine doses.
The ministry encourages parents whose children (aged 4 months to 5 years) missed the polio vaccines, as well as other under 5 vaccines, to visit the nearest health facilities for the mop up campaign.
Thank you.
Yours faithfully
[signed]
Dr Christopher Nyanga
For Permanent Secretary
