‘Smallpox eradication offers hope for Covid-19 and other diseases’

The World Health Organisation's Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said smallpox eradication has offered hopes to eliminate Covid-19 and other infectious diseases, including polio, which is now endemic in just two countries.

He came up with the remark at a virtual event hosted at WHO headquarters in Geneva Switzerland, involving key players in the eradication effort, according to a press release.

At the event, Dr Tedros also unveiled a commemorative postal stamp to recognize the global solidarity that drove the initiative and honour the efforts of health workers who ensured its success.

The stamp, developed by the United Nations Postal Administration (UNPA), in collaboration with WHO, signifies what national unity and global solidary can achieve. Numerous countries, such as Guinea, India, Nigeria, Philippines, Togo and others issued smallpox stamps to show support for, and raise awareness about WHO's Intensified Smallpox Eradication Programme launched in 1967.

Following smallpox eradication, WHO and UNICEF launched the Expanded Programme on Immunization, under which 85% of the world's children are vaccinated and protected from debilitating diseases.

With the potential of a Covid-19 vaccine ahead, ensuring sufficient supplies and reaching people in hard to reach places is a high priority. Addressing vaccine hesitancy poses a significant challenge to stop the virus. Access to accurate public health information and education is critical to ensure that the public has the facts to keep themselves and others safe.

To permanently commemorate the eradication of smallpox and the lessons learned on a global scale, rather than every 10-years, WHO is calling museums, exhibition companies, designers, curators and associations to develop an immersive, interactive and educational exhibition on smallpox and its relevance for Covid-19 and global health security.  The exhibition, which will be unveiled later this year, will promote a better understanding of public health and empower people to keep informed and safe during a pandemic.

The 33rd World Health Assembly officially declared on May 8, 1980 "The world and all its peoples have won freedom from smallpox." The declaration marked the end of a disease that had plagued humanity for at least 3 000 years, killing 300 million people in the 20th century alone. 

The US$ 300m price-tag to eradicate smallpox saves the world well over US$ 1 billion every year since 1980.