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WHO, African Ministers To Discuss Polio Crisis


Ministers from Nigeria, Niger, Egypt, Burkina Faso, Ivory Coast, Sudan, the Central African Republic and Chad are due to take part in the talks.

The World Health Organization says the worldwide number of polio cases rose by more than 30 percent last year, to more than 1,170. The majority of cases occurred in Nigeria, India and Pakistan.

WHO efforts to eradicate the disease globally by the end of this year have been hampered by a months-long vaccine boycott in the northern Nigerian state of Kano. Islamic leaders there claimed the WHO vaccine was contaminated with infertility agents.

They have since allowed innoculations to take place, using an alternative vaccine.

Some information for this report provided by AFP and WHO.

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