Health ministers and senior health officials from across the Eastern Mediterranean Region convened on 15 October 2025 for the14th meeting of the Regional Subcommittee for Polio Eradication and Outbreaks, held during the Seventy-second session of the WHO Regional Committee for the Eastern Mediterranean in Cairo. 

The Eastern Mediterranean Region is pivotal to global eradication efforts. Over the past 3 decades, all except 2 Member States have eradicated polio. All Member States have repeatedly stopped outbreaks and strengthened their outbreak preparedness and response, expanded access to vaccination and mobilized domestic resources to protect children from poliovirus. Afghanistan and Pakistan – the last 2 countries with endemic wild poliovirus – continue to intensify efforts to interrupt transmission. However, persistent challenges, including inaccessibility, insecurity – which spurs population movement – and variable campaign quality continue to require sustained attention. 

In his technical update, Dr Hamid Jafari, Director of Polio Eradication and Vaccine-Preventable Diseases for the Region, provided an overview of progress and highlighted the strong regional solidarity and political will driving results. He commended Member States for their collaboration and zero tolerance for any poliovirus and emphasized the importance of governments and partners urgently stepping up efforts to ensure every child is reached and transmission stopped once and for all.