The Ministry of Health (MoH) will be able to vaccinate around 10.4 million children under the age of 10 against polio type 2, as part of efforts to eradicate infantile paralysis in the country.

The vaccination will take place in two phases, the first in November and the second in December, and is currently in the preparation phase, said Quinhas Fernandes, national director of Public Health at the MoH, quoted by "Noticias".

The source also said that the decision to go ahead with this stage of immunization was the result of continued concern about the type 2 polio variant registered in some provinces, where eight cases have been reported cumulatively since 2021 - five in Nampula, two in Manica and one in Cabo Delgado.

To continue the activities to control the outbreak, the nOPV-2 vaccine, which is specific to type 2, will be used. "It is an oral immunizer and is used in emergency situations," said Fernandes,

In general, the two variants manifest themselves in the same way. The individual experiences headaches, decreased strength, movements or sudden paralysis of the lower and upper limbs.

He recalled that since March 2022 the country has faced three different outbreaks of polio: wild poliovirus type 1 and polio variants types 1 and 2. 11 rounds of vaccination have been carried out, some of them nationwide and others in selected provinces, using 106 million doses of bOPV vaccine.

As a result of this effort, the outbreak of wild poliovirus type 1 (PSV1) was closed in May, keeping the country and Africa free of the disease.

Fernandes therefore appeals to parents and/or guardians to take their children for vaccinations on the scheduled date, in order to give them better protection and quality of life.