Trump’s WHO funding cut may prevent Africa from being polio-free

The fight to eradicate polio from Africa could become an early casualty of President Donald Trump’s decision to withdraw funding to the World Health Organization, the international body said.

Nigeria, the last polio-endemic country in Africa, hasn’t had a reported case of the virus since August 2016, according to the WHO. The only two other endemic countries in the world are Afghanistan and Pakistan.

The U.S. is a major supporter of the fight against polio, which was on the verge of being eradicated on the continent before the coronavirus emerged, Matshidiso Moeti, WHO regional director for Africa, told reporters Thursday on a video conference call. The U.S. also supports “programs that address diseases such as HIV, malaria and work on strengthening our health systems,” she said.

The global eradication push had already faced setbacks, as WHO suspended polio vaccination campaigns to protect health workers from the coronavirus and free them up to support the fight against the new disease, Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on April 3. In Pakistan, which last year reported the biggest surge since 2014, anti-polio campaigns have been targeted by right-wing groups and militants, who’ve attacked health workers.

Some African countries have reported cases of vaccine-derived polioviruses, but only countries with cases of what is called the “wild polio virus” are considered endemic.

The WHO hopes that the decision to withdraw funding “will be rethought because the U.S. government is an important partner, not only in financial terms but also, it’s an important strategic partner,” Moeti said. The organization needs $300 million over the next six months to help African nations respond to the coronavirus alone, Moeti said.