The second round of the polio vaccination campaign in the Gaza Strip was completed yesterday, with an overall 556,774 children under the age of ten being vaccinated with a second dose of polio vaccine, and 448,425 children between two- and ten-years-old receiving Vitamin A, following the three phases conducted in the last weeks.

Administrative data confirms around 94 per cent of the target population of 591,714 children under the age of 10 years received their second dose of nOPV2 across the Gaza Strip, which is a remarkable achievement given the extremely difficult circumstances the campaign was executed under. The campaign achieved 103 per cent and 91 per cent coverage in central and southern Gaza respectively. However, in northern Gaza, where the campaign was compromised due to lack of access, approximately 88 per cent coverage was achieved according to preliminary data. An estimated 7,000-10,000 children in inaccessible areas like Jabalia, Beit Lahiya and Beit Hanoun remain unvaccinated and vulnerable to the poliovirus This also increases the risk of further spread of poliovirus in the Gaza Strip and neighbouring countries.