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Ammon News - The Ministry of Health on Tuesday received 1.3 million poliomyelitis syringes and vaccine containers donated by the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to the National Vaccination Program for Children as part of its efforts to curb the spread of life-threatening diseases among children in the Kingdom.

The donation included 1.3 million oral jabs of the poliomyelitis vaccine, 4 refrigeration chambers, 150 fridges, 1,000 cold chain temperature monitors and 10 freezers to expand storage capacity and provide vaccinations for health centers spread around the Kingdom.

Health Ministry Secretary-General for Epidemiology and Communicable Diseases, Raed Al-Shboul, said the ministry values the partnership with UNICEF and its support for the program, which improved capacities and health coverage for Jordanian and refugee children.

The donation, he stressed, will boost the level of health services as it will be distributed to hospitals and healthcare facilities in departments across all governorates.

The National Vaccination Program has contributed to protecting children from dangerous diseases and introducing new vaccines such as pneumococcus, he pointed out.

For her part, UNICEF representative in Jordan Tanya Chapuisat said the organization is committed to supporting the government to guarantee the safety of "every child" in Jordan through routine vaccination, as cold chains are the base of every vaccination campaign.

"Cold chains can guarantee safe storage and transportation of vaccines", she said, stressing the necessity to store them in specific temperatures, as high or low temperatures can cause the efficiency of vaccines to wane.

Thanks to routine vaccination, which became mandatory in Jordan in 1979 and was available for all children of all nationalities for free, Jordan has not seen any poliomyelitis cases since 1992, according to the ministry.

UNICEF also supports the Health Ministry through providing a reserve of equipment and vaccines to upgrade the current healthcare system, ensuring readiness for any future expansion of the program.