Africa Declared Free of Wild Polio in 'Milestone'

Africa has been declared free from wild polio by an independent body, the Africa Regional Certification Commission.

Polio typically affects infants under the age of five, often contributing to permanent paralysis. Death occurs when the breathing muscles are affected.

Twenty-five years earlier, thousands of children in Africa were crippled by the infection, BBC reported.

The disease is usually mainly present in Afghanistan and Pakistan.

There is no cure, but the polio vaccine keeps children alive.

Nigeria is the last African country to be declared free from wild polio, accounting for more than half of all global cases less than a decade ago.

Vaccination drive in Nigeria has required a big undertaking to enter remote and unsafe areas affected by separatist activity and several health workers have been killed in the process.

Polio is a virus that spreads from person to person, usually through contaminated water. It can lead to paralysis by attacking the nervous system.