The World Health Organisation (WHO) officially declared Indonesia polio-free. The global health organisation announced on November 19 the end of the poliovirus type-2 outbreak in the country, marking a major milestone for Indonesia following years of low vaccination.
The announcement was made after no children was detected of poliovirus were detected since 2024.
According to Indonesia’s Ministry of Health, nearly 60 million additional doses of polio vaccine were administered nationwide as part of the emergency response, as per the WHO. Health Minister Budi Gunadi Sadikin has given the credit for the same to the healthcare workers, the cooperation of parents, and support from global partners.
“We have managed to stop the spread of polio in Indonesia thanks to the dedication of our health workers, commitment of parents and communities to get the children vaccinated and the support of our partners. Every child deserves protection. We must keep working to make sure polio does not return by ensuring all children receive complete age-appropriate polio immunisations,” he said.
He then also warned about the threat of polio in the areas where the vaccination coverage is still low.
WHO Regional Director for the Western Pacific, Dr Saia Ma’u Piukala, said Indonesia’s success strengthens the entire region’s polio-free status, and cited, “Indonesia’s success marks a vital step towards a polio-free world. It also reinforces the entire WHO Western Pacific Region’s ability to retain its polio-free status, an achievement we proudly reached 25 years ago,”
The outbreak began in October 2022 with the first case detected in Aceh. Additional cases were confirmed in Banten, West Java, Central Java, East Java, North Maluku, Central Papua, Highland Papua and South Papua, with the last case reported on 27 June 2024. After this, the Indonesian government launched multiple rounds of vaccination campaigns using the novel OPV-2 (nOPV2) vaccine and improved routine immunisation coverage.
