# Polio in Somalia: the 2005 and 2013 outbreaks and vaccine-derived polio since 2017

> Polio in Somalia: cases reported to WHO since 1983, the 2005 and 2013–2014 wild polio outbreaks, the vaccine-derived outbreaks from 2017, and the vaccination campaigns.

Source page: https://calankii.com/en/society/polio-in-somalia/
Last checked: 2026-11-13
Publisher: Calankii (https://calankii.com)

## In short

Polio cases in Somalia have been reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) since 1983. The two largest years are **2013 (195 cases)** and **2005 (185 cases)** ([WHO Global Health Observatory, poliomyelitis reported cases, Somalia](https://ghoapi.azureedge.net/api/WHS3_49?$filter=SpatialDim%20eq%20%27SOM%27)).

The 2013 outbreak of wild poliovirus type 1 began in Somalia and spread to Kenya and Ethiopia. From 2017, a different kind of polio appeared: circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus (cVDPV), which can spread where too few children are vaccinated ([ReliefWeb, Horn of Africa: Polio Outbreak – Aug 2018](https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2018-000161-som)).

## Cases reported to WHO

| Year | Cases | | Year | Cases |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 | 70 | | 2004 | 0 |
| 1984 | 19 | | 2005 | 185 |
| 1985 | 6 | | 2006 | 35 |
| 1986 | 1 | | 2007 | 8 |
| 1987 | 53 | | 2008 | 1 |
| 1988 | 54 | | 2009 | 6 |
| 1989 | 155 | | 2010 | 1 |
| 1997 | 1 | | 2011 | 9 |
| 1998 | 12 | | 2012 | 1 |
| 1999 | 19 | | 2013 | 195 |
| 2000 | 96 | | 2014 | 5 |
| 2001 | 7 | | 2015 to 2017 | 0 |
| 2002 | 3 | | 2018 | 12 |
| 2003 | 0 | | | |

Source: WHO Global Health Observatory, indicator WHS3_49, downloaded 13 November 2026. Years not shown were not reported.

## The 2013 to 2014 wild polio outbreak

- **First case.** Confirmed in Somalia on 9 May 2013, in Banadir and Bay. It was "the first outbreak in Somalia since 2007" (Global Polio Eradication Initiative, GPEI, 30 May 2013).
- **Spread.** By 14 August 2013 Somalia had 105 cases, "the worst outbreak in the world in a non-endemic country" according to OCHA (OCHA, 15 August 2013).
- **End of 2013.** The Horn of Africa total stood at 203 cases: 183 in Somalia, 14 in Kenya and 6 in Ethiopia (GPEI, 24 December 2013).
- **2014.** By 18 June 2014 the total was 219: 195 in Somalia, 14 in Kenya, 10 in Ethiopia (GPEI, 18 June 2014).
- **Last case.** The last wild polio case on the African continent at that time had paralysis in Somalia on 11 August 2014 (GPEI, 18 February 2015).

All from [ReliefWeb, Horn of Africa: Polio Outbreak – May 2013](https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2013-000064-ken).

## Vaccine-derived polio since 2017

- **2018.** Types 2 and 3 (cVDPV2 and cVDPV3) were confirmed. By October 2018 there were 12 cases, several of them in children from inaccessible areas of Lower [Juba](/en/economy/farming-and-harvests/) and Middle Shabelle; one five-month-old "had never received polio vaccination" (WHO/UNICEF, 8 and 15 October 2018).
- **Campaigns.** A nationwide campaign in October 2018 targeted about 2.6 million children under five. By November 2018 there had been ten targeted campaigns (WHO/UNICEF, 8 October 2018; Health Cluster, 30 November 2018).
- **2019.** A type 2 case in Laascaanood, [Sool](/en/regions/sool/), had paralysis on 15 March 2019. Somalia reported three type 2 cases that year. The same strain caused cases in Ethiopia's Somali region, and the outbreak was declared a regional public health emergency by Ethiopia, Kenya and Somalia (WHO/UNICEF, 28 April 2019; WHO, 31 July 2019).
- **2020.** Somalia reported 13 type 2 cases, including in Banadir and [Woqooyi Galbeed](/en/regions/woqooyi-galbeed/), and 25 or more positive sewage samples. By November 2020 there had been 27 vaccine-derived cases since 2018 (GPEI, 11 November 2020; 13 January 2021).
- **2021.** WHO declared the type 3 outbreak closed, "a full 28 months after this strain of polio was last detected in Somalia". One type 2 case in Salagle, Middle Juba, had paralysis on 12 May 2021 (GPEI, 14 April 2021; WHO, 17 February 2022).

All from [ReliefWeb, Horn of Africa: Polio Outbreak – Aug 2018](https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2018-000161-som).

## Related pages

- [Health in Somalia](/en/society/health-in-somalia/)
- [Measles in Somalia](/en/society/measles-in-somalia/)
- [Health numbers, 1990 to 2025](/en/data/health-numbers-1990-2025/)

## Sources

- World Health Organization. Global Health Observatory: [poliomyelitis, number of reported cases (WHS3_49)](https://ghoapi.azureedge.net/api/WHS3_49?$filter=SpatialDim%20eq%20%27SOM%27), Somalia.
- ReliefWeb. [Horn of Africa: Polio Outbreak – May 2013](https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2013-000064-ken) (GPEI, OCHA, IFRC reports, 2013 to 2015).
- ReliefWeb. [Horn of Africa: Polio Outbreak – Aug 2018](https://reliefweb.int/disaster/ep-2018-000161-som) (WHO, UNICEF, OCHA, GPEI reports, 2018 to 2023).

---
I want to help with this: email hello@calankii.com. Fix this page: email hello@calankii.com with the page link and your source.