The Minister of Health Dr. Hamad Al-Mane expressed his gratitude towards the praise of the Council of Ministers in its meeting held on Monday 05/03/2007 regarding the achievements realized by the Kingdom in the field of health services, for which the Kingdom has been awarded the polio free certificate. Appreciating the government's contribution in increasing the financial support directed towards improving the comprehensive vaccination program for children, Dr. Al-Mane, in a press release issued on this occasion, said this achievement would have been a reality without the effective support offered by the government.
He said MOH is planning for a number projects for improving the health services and providing health care to both the citizens and residents.
It has to be mentioned here that no new cases of polio have been detected in the Kingdom since 1995. The High Resolution No. 7/S/9341, issued on 24/04/1399H, which linked issuance of birth certificates to fulfilling the basic immunizations for the child had its effect on raising the immunization coverage to over 96%.
The certificate has been awarded to the Ministry of Health by the World Health Organization on Saturday March 3, 2007 in presence of the WHO Regional Manager for the Middle East Dr. Husain Al-Jazairi.