Government says it has put in place a robust system to contain the spread of polio.

The assurance follows a declaration by Ministry of Health that the polio outbreak is a Public Health Emergency following confirmed case registered mid last week in Lilongwe.

Addressing a news conference in Lilongwe, Deputy Minister of Health Enock Phale said government in collaboration with stakeholders in the health sector have intensified efforts towards eradication of the infection.

Phale has also disclosed that government is rolling out immunisation programme especially in the area where the first case was detected.

He said: “It is believed that it is an imported case, and we have put robust system to make sure that we contain its spread.”

“We are doing whatever we can to make sure that we break the infectious cycle and one of them is to bring the public awareness because it transmitted through water and food.”

Meanwhile, the World Health Organisation (WHO) through its Coordinator for Basic Package of Essential Health Service Cluster Dr Janet Kayita says it will assist government’s drive in rolling out polio vaccine to all under five children in the country.

“The first is to intensify surveillance because it’s really important to understand what is happening on the ground the second is to strengthen the immunisation,” Kayita said.

“The specific outbreak response is the national immunisation campaign targeting all children aged under five with the polio vaccine which two is oral drops and it will be repeated again in the second one.”

According to the Ministry, vaccines are the most effective and available prevention strategy for this disease in addition to improved water and sanitation practices.

Worldwide, there are still few countries mainly out side Africa where Wild Polio Virus type 1 is endemic.