Polio cases emerge in Cameroon

YAOUNDE: Cameroon on Thursday said it was launching a polio awareness campaign after two cases of the much-feared virus surfaced in the capital Yaounde.

Senior health ministry official Jose Shalom Tchokfe told AFP the authorities would advise the public about “respecting hygiene measures, stepping up routine vaccination and observing epidemiological vigilance.” Health Minister Manaouda Malachie on Monday said “two cases of type 2 poliovirus” had been found in the Cite Verte district of Yaounde. Polio’s return to the central African country is “a public health emergency,” he added. “The risk of the spread of the virus is high,” he said.