Polio this week as of 28 May 2025

Headlines

• Polio eradication at WHA: click here for a summary of all polio-related discussions and side events at this month’s World Health Assembly in Geneva.
• Professor Helen Rees, Chair of the IHR Emergency Committee on polio eradication, was awarded the prestigious Dr LEE Jong-wook Memorial Prize for Public Health 2025, for her outstanding contributions to public health, not least of course to polio eradication. More.
• The Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) pays tribute to Sebastião Salgado, the legendary Brazilian photographer whose work illuminated the fight against polio. Salgado sadly passed away last week at the age of 81. Through his powerful imagery, he documented not only the devastating effects of polio but also the relentless efforts of health workers and communities striving to create a world free of the disease.
• Horn of Africa health ministers commit to bolster polio eradication efforts: countries across the Horn of Africa, with support from AFRO and EMRO, are intensifying eradication efforts in cross-regional collaboration and coordination. More.