8 Aug 2012

ANGOLA / POLIO

Angola, one of the last countries where polio was endemic, has been free of the crippling disease for one year now. But a group of experts has warned that the country's capital Luanda, with its sprawling informal settlements, inadequate infrastructure and poor sanitation, is a "natural home for polio". UNICEF

Posted at: August 8, 2012 2:53 pm

Duration: 03:12

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Full script

STORY: ANGOLA / POLIO
TRT: 3.12
SOURCE: UNICEF
RESTRICTIONS: NONE
LANGUAGE: PORTUGUESE / NATS

DATELINE: 1-5 AUGUST 2012, UIGE & LUANDA, ANGOLA

SHOTLIST:

1-5 AUGUST 2012, UIGE, ANGOLA

1. Various shots, Ricardo, crippled by polio, cycling to work
2. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Ricardo Monteiro, 26 year old polio victim:
"I learned how to work with steel to make doors and windows the way my instructor showed me."
3. Various shots, Ricardo welding
4. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Ricardo Monteiro, 26 year old polio victim:
"Because of the way I am, that I cannot do the things they do I felt useless but because I didn't want to destroy mind that I have that god gave me, I left."
5. Wide shot, Ricardo and his boss welding
6. Close up, Uige sign
7. Wide shot, buildings
8. Wide shot, community health worker talking to families
9. Med shot, girl washing her hands
10. Med shot, Loucricia Pedro Miguel, Uige Provincial Immunization Supervisor checking vaccinations in freezer
11. Close up, vaccination boxes
12. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Loucricia Pedro Miguel, Uige Provincial Immunization Supervisor:
"There is an improvement in the behaviour of people in relation to the polio campaigns, as well as routine immunization."

1-5 AUGUST 2012, LUANDA, ANGOLA

13. Various shots, Luanda streets
14. Close up, community leader vaccinating child
15. Wide shot, community leaders talking to mother and children
16. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Enedir Rosa Correa, Coordinator Pastoral da Crianca, Cazenga Municipality:
"The big contribution that Pastoral da Crianca is that these mothers don't have a problem going into families' houses, to talk with parents about why it is important for children to get the vaccine, that it is for the wellbeing of the children."
17. Various shots, community volunteers

1-5 AUGUST 2012, UIGE, ANGOLA

18. Med shot, Ricardo and his boss measuring a piece of steel
19. Close up, measuring tape
20. SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Ricardo Monteiro, 26 year old polio victim:
"My future is not threatened. I have a future of beauty and a good life. Next year I will study for real. Because the little dream I have of becoming a nurse and of course I will get it because I have this strength inside."
21. Wide shot, Ricardo in wheelchair
22. Wide shot, Red Cross volunteer giving child vaccination
23. Wide shot, Red Cross volunteer giving child vaccination
24. Wide shot, boy flying kite
25. Wide shot, kite

STORYLINE:

Ricardo Monteiro is making his way through the streets of Uige in north-east Angola to his place of work.

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Ricardo Monteiro, 26 year old polio victim:
"I learned how to work with steel to make doors and windows the way my instructor showed me."

Ricardo came to Uige after facing rejection from his family in his village.

He contracted polio as a child during a war which ravaged the country for almost three decades.

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Ricardo Monteiro, 26 year old polio victim:
"Because of the way I am, that I cannot do the things they do I felt useless but because I didn't want to destroy mind that I have that god gave me, I left."

A story like Ricardo's will hopefully be a thing of the past.

It was here in Uige province, on the border with the Democratic Republic of Congo that the last reported case of polio was found.

Angola is now one year free of the crippling disease.

This achievement is the result of efforts by the government, development partners and community involvement.  This year alone just three percent of children in Uige did not receive a polio vaccination. This is compared to ten percent of children in 2011.

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Loucricia Pedro Miguel, Uige Provincial Immunization Supervisor:
"There is an improvement in the behaviour of people in relation to the polio campaigns, as well as routine immunization."

While Uige has made great strides in the fight against polio, in the country's growing capital, Luanda, the task is more difficult. Sprawling informal settlements, inadequate infrastructure and poor sanitation are reasons why this city has been described as a "natural home for polio" by a group of experts called the Independent Monitoring Board.

But community leaders in Cazenga, one of Luanda's many poverty-stricken areas, are trying to lead the way in making sure children receive their polio vaccinations and that families lead healthier lives.

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Enedir Rosa Correa, Coordinator Pastoral da Crianca, Cazenga Municipality:
"The big contribution that Pastoral da Crianca is that these mothers don't have a problem going into families' houses, to talk with parents about why it is important for children to get the vaccine, that it is for the wellbeing of the children."

And the project, supported by UNICEF, WHO, and partners, is bearing fruit.

Back in Uige, Ricardo is determined to lead the best life he can.

SOUNDBITE (Portuguese) Ricardo Monteiro, 26 year old polio victim:
"My future is not threatened. I have a future of beauty and a good life. Next year I will study for real. Because the little dream I have of becoming a nurse and of course I will get it because I have this strength inside."

For Angola to truly eradicate polio, it must have no reported cases of the disease for three years.

It is well on its way to achieving that and ensuring its children can grow to fulfil their right of reaching their full potential.