Papua New Guinea has kicked off a major immunisation program, after a polio outbreak was detected this week with two cased found in young children. A ‘national emergency response’ has been triggered by Australia’s closest international neighbour.
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00:00Here in this settlement in Port Moresby, parents have been lining up to get their children vaccinated.
00:07It's part of a major push to increase immunisation rates after the WHO declared a polio outbreak in PNG earlier this week.
00:15Papua New Guinea has extremely low vaccination rates with less than 50% of the population protected from the disease.
00:23The aim is now to make sure every child under the age of 11 gets a polio vaccine,
00:28a plan that's estimated to cost about $30 million.
00:34I've seen pictures of kids with polio with swollen legs and limbs,
00:39so I'm scared of the disease and thinking of my grandchildren.
00:44The polio strain was picked up initially in wastewater samples,
00:47but the WHO has now reported signs of community transmission in the city of Ley.
00:53It sparked concern not just for PNG but also for neighbouring countries,
00:58where unvaccinated children could be at risk.
01:01The WHO is urging families to ensure all their kids are up to date with vaccinations.