UNICEF in action

We have been here before: Lessons learned in the fight against polio are informing the global COVID-19 response.

How UNICEF and partners in the successful fight to end polio were able to quickly pivot toward a new public health threat.

On January 11, Pakistan launched its first vaccination campaign of 2021, with an ambitious goal: vaccinate 40 million children under the age of 5 against polio in just five days.

While COVID-19 and related crises commanded the world's attention, some progress was achieved for children and families on several important fronts. Here's a look at some positive developments in 2020.

Like nearly everything else, the fight to free the world of polio has been hobbled by COVID-19. Though Africa's recent certification as wild-polio free is a milestone to celebrate this World Polio Day, severe challenges remain.

Donate Now After the wild poliovirus was officially eliminated in Africa in August, Afghanistan and Pakistan became the only countries in the world where polio remains endemic. A highly infectious...

Vaccination campaigns disrupted by COVID-19 have resumed in Pakistan and Afghanistan, the last two polio-endemic countries in the world.

UNICEF's role in the world's war against COVID-19 reflects a legacy of saving and protecting children from disease.

The global response to COVID-19 puts children at risk while threatening to undermine decades of progress against the crippling disease.