The South-East Asia Regional Certification Commission for Polio Eradication (SEA-RCCPE) meeting was held on 21 - 22 September 2022 to review the annual reports submitted by the National Co-ordinating Centre for Public Engagement (NCCPEs) and provide feedback. The specific objectives were to review country performances on maintaining their polio-free status and provide recommendations on:
- Maintaining population immunity;
- Polio surveillance;
- National risk assessments;
- Outbreak preparedness, and
- Containment of polioviruses.
Participants also reviewed the implementation status of the recommendations made at the 14th meeting of SEA-RCCPE held in 2021; and prepared an update for the GCC on the regional polio-free certification status.
Based on reports received by NCCPEs and presentations made, the commission concluded that the WHO South-East Asia Region had remained polio-free during the review period. The SEA-RCCPE expressed concern around the continued transmission of wild poliovirus Type 1 (WPV1) and outbreaks of circulating vaccine-derived polioviruses (cVDPVs), especially Type 2, and considered them to be an equally important risk to the polio-free status of the Region. SEA-RCCPE emphasized that risks were exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic which led to backsliding in critical polio activities in almost all countries and some countries being unable to achieve their pre-COVID-19 level surveillance sensitivity and immunization coverage.
Acknowledging the efforts made by all countries to retain the polio-free status, SEA-RCCPE provided general recommendations applicable to the Region and country-specific recommendations to further strengthen their polio programmes.
Participants: Members of the South-East Asia Regional Certification Commission for Poliomyelitis Eradication (SEA-RCCPE), chairpersons/representatives of National Certification Committees for Polio Eradication (NCCPEs), Chair of Global Certification Commission (GCC), Ministry of Health (India), donor and partner agencies, WHO HQ, AFRO, EMRO, WPRO, Country Office for India and WHO-SEARO.
Photo credits: WHO
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