Progress toward poliomyelitis eradication–Southern Africa, 2001-March 2003

Since the 1988 World Health Assembly resolution to eradicate poliomyelitis globally, substantial progress has been made in all World Health Organization (WHO) regions, and three regions (Americas, European, and Western Pacific) are classified as polio-free. The African Region comprises four epidemiologic blocks (Central, Eastern, Southern, and Western). The Southern African block comprises 14 countries–10 on the mainland (Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, and Zimbabwe) and four in the Indian Ocean (Comoros, Madagascar, Mauritius, and Seychelles)–with a combined total population in 2002 of approximately 120 million persons. This report summarizes polio eradication efforts in the Southern African block during January 2001-March 2003, which indicate the possible interruption of wild poliovirus (WPV) transmission and underscore the need to sustain polio eradication efforts.