In a bid to combat the resurgence of polio in Gaza, a series of "humanitarian pauses" to the ongoing conflict have been agreed upon, starting this Sunday. This initiative aims to enable vital polio vaccinations to take place, particularly for hundreds of thousands of children in the region.

The urgency to vaccinate arose after UN officials reported the first recorded case of polio in Gaza in 25 years, which has resulted in partial paralysis of a 10-month-old infant. Polio is a highly infectious disease, primarily affecting children under the age of five. The virus spreads easily through contact with infected faeces or contaminated water and food.

While many individuals who contract the infection show no symptoms, approximately one in 200 cases develop into more severe issues when the virus invades the brain and nervous system. This can lead to irreversible paralysis, often affecting the legs, and in some cases, it can be fatal if the muscles responsible for breathing become immobilised.

The disruption caused by the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas has severely impacted regular child vaccination programs in Gaza and has also caused significant damage to water and sanitation systems. Before the conflict, immunization rates in Gaza and the occupied West Bank were optimal, with estimated polio vaccine coverage of 99% for two doses in 2022. However, recent data shows that coverage has dropped to less than 90%.

The World Health Organization (WHO) aims to vaccinate approximately 640,000 children under the age of 10 in Gaza. The vaccination campaign will commence in central Gaza on Sunday, with three consecutive daily pauses in fighting between 6 am and 3 pm local time. The program will then move to southern Gaza for another three-day pause, followed by northern Gaza.

According to UN officials, those children who receive the vaccine will require a second dose in late September. Health workers are striving to achieve a vaccine coverage of 95% across the entire strip, as this is essential to stop the transmission of the polio virus. If this target is not met, an additional humanitarian pause has been agreed upon to allow for a fourth day of vaccination.

To facilitate the vaccination campaign, Gaza has already received around 1.3 million doses of the novel oral polio vaccine type 2 (nOPV2), with an additional 400,000 doses expected to arrive soon. The vaccines will be administered by trained UN staff and local healthcare workers in hospitals, field hospitals, and primary health centers. The transport and refrigeration of the vaccines are deemed crucial for their efficacy, according to the WHO.

Since the global polio eradication initiative was launched in 1988, poliovirus cases have significantly declined worldwide. However, polio remains endemic in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Additionally, there have been outbreaks of poliovirus variants in over 30 countries, particularly in areas with low immunization rates.

The WHO emphasizes that as long as any child remains infected, the risk of polio transmission persists globally, as the virus can easily be imported into polio-free countries. Preventive measures such as vaccination are vital, as there is currently no known cure for polio. Multiple doses of vaccines are necessary to ensure lifelong protection against the disease. The oral vaccine, which contains a weakened form of the live virus and is administered as drops, has proven to be effective and easily administered.

The humanitarian pauses in the Gaza conflict serve as a crucial opportunity to prioritize the health and wellbeing of children in the region, protecting them from the grave consequences of polio. The international community, health organizations, and local workers are joining forces to ensure that this vaccination campaign in Gaza is successful in halting the resurgence of this debilitating disease.