Africa reaches milestone with polio-free year

London: Africa has marked a year without a new case of wild polio in the continent.

According to the BBC, since the past 12 months, not a single case of polio has been reported in the continent.

Head of the WHO polio eradication initiative, Hamid Jafari, said that it was extremely encouraging and demonstrated real progress, adding that it must be taken within context and with caution.

It will be six to eight weeks before data is analyzed and it is conclusively established that there have been no new cases in Africa since 11 August 2014.

Africa has never before accomplished this, but for a region to be declared polio- free, three years must lapse without a new infection.