WHO's polio emergency committee calls Afghanistan's South Region the greatest concern
8 October 2026
The statement of the forty-fifth meeting of the Polio IHR Emergency Committee was published by the World Health Organization on 25 August 2026.
It records three wild poliovirus type 1 (WPV1) cases in Afghanistan in 2026 to date, against 21 WPV1 cases in 2025.
Afghanistan had 17 WPV1-positive environmental samples in 2026 to date, against 94 in 2025, and the most recent WPV1 detection recorded was on 23 February 2026.
Cases came from the South and East Regions, and the Committee called the South Region the greatest concern, with intense transmission and evidence of prolonged undetected circulation.
No house-to-house campaigns have been held in Afghanistan since October 2024 because of security concerns, and the Committee urged the country to explore moving to house-to-house vaccination nationwide.
Afghanistan and Pakistan are treated as a single epidemiological bloc, with continued cross-border risk including from undocumented returnees.
In plain words
WPV1 Wild poliovirus type 1 — The only wild poliovirus serotype still circulating, found in Afghanistan and Pakistan.
IHR International Health Regulations — The WHO legal framework under which the polio Emergency Committee meets.