On 5 June 2025, the Ghana Health Service, with funding and technical assistance from WHO, organized a training for field officers for a nationwide survey on poliovirus containment and risk assessment
ACCRA, Ghana, June 19, 2025/APO Group/ --
Ghana continues to make impressive strides in the fight against poliovirus, with the last confirmed case of Wild Poliovirus (WPV) recorded in 2008 and the most recent Variant Poliovirus (VDPV) detected in 2024. As the number of confirmed polio cases and detection of the virus in the environment decline steadily, the World Health Organization (WHO) and partners remain committed in minimizing the risk of reintroduction of poliovirus.
On 5 June 2025, the Ghana Health Service, with funding and technical assistance from WHO, organized a training for field officers for a nationwide survey on poliovirus containment and risk assessment. The exercise was designed to ensure that biomedical laboratories handling poliovirus infectious or Potentially Infectious Materials (PIMs) are not inadvertently creating pathways for virus reintroduction.
Participants at the orientation were trained on the use of the WHO Open Data Kit (ODK) toolkit for conducting surveys, assessing risks in biomedical laboratories, and supporting facilities to implement appropriate biosafety and decontamination measures in line with WHO’s containment guidelines (GAPIII and GAPIV). Discussions also covered survey methodologies, biosafety and biosecurity practices.
Speaking at the training, Dr. Lawson Ahadzie, Chairman of the National Certification Committee on Polio Eradication, stressed the importance of following up with the recommendations of the survey.
“We are in the final lap of polio eradication. What remains is ensuring that all possible sources of virus reintroduction—especially from laboratories—are identified and secured. This training equips field officers with the skills to do just that”, he said.
Dr Raymond Dankoli, Global Polio Eradication Initiative Coordinator, highlighted the importance of the survey and implementation of findings. “This can also be seen as part of the general response measures to the confirmed Polio event in August 2024”, he added.
The last PIMs Survey and national risk assessment in 2022 identified seven laboratories across the country storing Poliovirus Potentially Infectious Materials (PV PIMs). These materials were classified as PIMs due to no laboratory investigations conducted. They were however securely contained within Biosafety Level 2 (BSL-2) laboratories, with stringent decontamination and waste management protocols. Additionally, 66 vaccine repositories across regional and district hospitals were found to contain Sabin/bOPV stocks for routine vaccination activities.
Dr. Michael Adjabeng, Surveillance Officer with WHO Ghana, emphasized the need for the involvement of all stakeholders in the containment activities. “Ghana has come far, but the job isn’t finished. Containment is about responsibility. It’s about making sure we build upon progress made. This survey is a key part of that effort”, he stated.
Findings from the survey will be disseminated to key stakeholders, given the broader implications for containment and risk mitigation strategies. This survey will help identify any PV PIMs present in biomedical laboratories and ensure their appropriate handling and disposal in accordance with WHO containment guidelines for a polio free world.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of World Health Organization (WHO), Ghana.
We kindly request you to release all election funds for Somaliland without condition. If see a problem or concerned about its mismanagement, ask us to arrange a committee outside the election committee that more reliable, and we are capable to produce. Call it Election fund committee
Remember if you see a problem towards Somaliland Election- Committee, Somalilanders see a bigger problem then yours that is deeply entrenched to their culture, and the lesser evil will be the one they would embark on it and they have no choice. Their goal is to produce a fair and free election to the best of their ability that is even better then the previous one of 2003. They would thwart anything that is obstacle to that goal including ill prepared and ill timed voting registration. Inter-peace involved itself a small unrecognized country with struggling democracy that is not ready to their state-of arts election process. Let them wait at 2015.
Again may we kindly urge you -Donors-, to release the funds appropriated for the Somaliland Election and resign from insisting to purge some of their Election Committee; they have no time for that since 27 September of this year is marked for their election.
Please be patient with them. At least, Somaliland election is more fair and transparent then many African countries such as Egypt and Nigeria. One more thing, don’t forget to send a reliable observers to monitor a blazing African democracy at its infancy.
As Somali maxim put it, “ Libaax nin ganey iyo nin galadey kala og”. Rough translation: Lion knew who injure it, and who set it free. Believe me; I don’t know how our ancestors find out that, but it helps our recollection.
I cannot believe Somaliland people are falling for this Riwayad. This so called ‘donors’ and their brokers misused and stole the money allocated for Somaliland elections, created a huge tension among the Somaliland people, and trying to get away with it! If as they claiming the ‘Voters List’ is appropriate and valid why it never came out on agreed time earlier this year? Why they have been saying for a very long time the server was down and now suddenly the server is functional?! Why did they wait up to show the results till this moment (the time Somaliland is confused and fragile, right after the Ceelberbadle problems)? To me, enemy of Somaliland is behind these people, they trying to destroying our country, democracy and nation. I will ask the Somaliland people to unite this difficult time if they want to survive this turbulance. And I finally congratulate the government for expelling the traitors of Somaliland “Inter Peace organization” out of our beloved land.
When it comes to Somaliland, the so called Interpeace has one agenda and one agenda only, to make Somaliland and it's government noneexistant in the eyes of the world by dividing Somaliland leadership and causing crisis among it's people.
The Somaliland people have built their Country from scratch without the outside help and we will continue doing so as long as it takes.
Dear Donors,
If you are honostly helping my country as you calaiming, 1. why did you organize the meeting and trying to resurrect those war criminals who caused so much pain for SOmaliland? 2. why clinton is trying to break us into pieces by meeting some of our leaders and not others? 3. what is your intrest here if we turn into chaos like rest of our country??
hani