The global effort to eradicate polio could face setbacks unless U.S. funding, potentially amounting to hundreds of millions of dollars over the coming years, is restored, a senior World Health Organization (WHO) official has cautioned.
Hamid Jafari, director of the WHO’s polio eradication program for the Eastern Mediterranean region, which includes Afghanistan and Pakistan—two countries where wild polio is still spreading—stated that a crucial $133 million expected from the U.S. this year is now missing.
The withdrawal of the U.S. from WHO has affected multiple efforts, including collaboration with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Additionally, UNICEF’s polio grant was recently terminated following a decision by the U.S. State Department to cut 90% of USAID’s global grants in alignment with former President Donald Trump’s “America First” policy.
“If this funding gap persists, it could delay polio eradication and result in more children suffering from paralysis,” Jafari warned. He also noted that extending the timeline for eradication would increase overall costs.
Efforts are underway to find alternative funding sources to sustain key personnel and critical activities. However, Jafari expressed hope that the U.S. would reconsider its decision and resume its financial support for polio eradication.
Despite the funding challenges, vaccination campaigns in Afghanistan and Pakistan will continue.
While UNICEF declined to comment, a spokesperson for the Gates Foundation acknowledged that no single organization could compensate for the financial shortfall left by the U.S. Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia recently contributed $500 million to the cause.
The polio eradication partnership already faces a $2.4 billion funding gap through 2029, as it recently acknowledged that eliminating the disease would take longer and cost more than originally anticipated.
