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Rumbidzayi Zinyuke Senior Health Reporter

Health and Child Care ministry has launched a national polio vaccination campaign targeting children under the age of five years.

The roll out is part of a regional strategy to prevent the resurgence of polio following an outbreak of the disease in Malawi and Mozambique.

The first round of the programme will run from tomorrow until Sunday October 30, while the second one will be conducted from December 1 to 4.

Polio is a viral disease that, in its most severe form, causes nerve injury leading to paralysis and difficulty in breathing.

Zimbabwe last reported a case of polio in 1989 and was declared polio free in 2005 by the World Health Organisation.

The disease can be prevented by administering the Oral Poliovirus Vaccine, which is used throughout the world.