Immunization helps prevent spread of disease during Horn of Africa crisis

In the wake of drought and famine across the Horn of Africa, thousands of refugees have made the journey to Kenya in search of food and water. The population of the world’s largest refugee camp in Dadaab is now around 400,000 and thousands more are displaced across the region. Crowding, inadequate sanitation and poor immunity due to malnutrition combine to create the perfect climate for diseases to spread – diseases like polio. Global Polio Eradication Initiative partner agencies continue to strive to prevent outbreaks of vaccine preventable diseases.

Two videos released by UNICEF show the work being done on the ground – the first in Dadaab and the second in Liboi on the Somali-Kenyan border. Across the Horn of Africa, polio-funded staff are involved in similar vaccination campaigns, working against the clock to improve the immunity of hundreds of thousands of malnourished children.