Saudi Arabia has reaffirmed its $ 500 million commitment to the World Polio Eradication (GPEI) initiative, aimed at eradicating wild polio and controlling polio epidemics derived from vaccines in Pakistan and ‘Afghanistan, the World Health Organization (which) announced on Monday.
The funds, initially promised in April 2024, will be allocated to support efforts to eliminate the wild strain of the virus, which remains endemic in the two countries. Together, Pakistan and Afghanistan reported 99 cases of wild polio the previous year, according to WHO data.
The GPEI has set new target dates, aimed at ending the wild polio by 2027 and the polio derived from the vaccine by 2029 – extended by the original 2026 objective for both.
Meanwhile, the United States, historically one of the main donors of GPEI, announced its intention to withdraw from WHO, a decision that could have an impact on the financing of the global health initiative. Despite this, the United States has contributed 17% of the GPEI budget for 2024-2025, according to WHO figures.
