Immunisation from polio requires multiple vaccinations, not just a single injection, which means health workers in Syria have to make more than one journey through highly complex and dangerous lines of conflict.
Vaccines must also be stored and transported in temperature-controlled conditions, adding to the logistical challenges.
In addition to reaching children living in hard to access, people also move regularly, forced out of areas by fighting, making if difficult to ensure a full course of vaccinations are given to each child.
Given the vast exodus of Syrians seeking refuge in neighbouring countries, the vaccination drive has also been taking place among national populations and refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, Turkey and Egypt, all of which have taken in millions of Syrians.
“As polio is a communicable disease which transmits easily and can spread easily with population movements, this is not a Syrian problem, but indeed a risk to the entire region,” Oliver Rosenbauer, a spokesperson for the World Health Organisation, said.
In December, more than 580,000 children were vaccinated in Lebanon, including door-to-door vaccinations for all Palestinian and Syrian refugees less than 5 years of age. In Turkey, 1.3 million were vaccinated, mostly in areas near the border with Syria, while in Egypt, over 14 million were vaccinated, including more than 18,000 Syrian children out of an estimated 20,000 present in the country.
psands@thenational.ae
