Egypt's Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research and Acting Minister of Health and Population, Khaled Abdel Ghaffar, launched on Sunday, the national campaign for free vaccination against polio, from the Asmarat Medical Center in Cairo. The campaign will run from 19 to 22 December, in order to raise the societal immunity of children against the disease. The last registered case of polio in Egypt was registered 14 years ago, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). During the launching, the minister pointed out that the campaign aims to vaccinate 16.5 million children from one day to five years of age, both Egyptian and non-Egyptian children residing on the land of Egypt. Vaccination is done through 45,000 medical teams comprising 90,000 members trained at the highest level, in addition to the supervisory teams at all levels in the ministry, health directorates and departments and medical districts. He further explained that vaccinations are carried out through fixed teams at health offices, units and medical centers nationwide, in addition to gathering places, markets, major squares, train stations, bus stops, metro stations and commercial malls. The minister pointed to the provision of mobile teams roaming homes in villages, remote areas and kindergartens to ensure coverage of 100% of the children targeted in the campaign. Abdel Ghaffar called on all families to go to the nearest team of the national polio vaccination campaign teams, to vaccinate their children, in order to preserve their health and prevent them from contracting the disease. He also stressed that vaccinations are safe and free of charge, highlighting the necessity for considering all preventive and precautionary measures against the Coronavirus during the implementation of the campaign work.
