The WHO is positive about the chances of eradication of the disease in Africa.

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And those systems can be used to help expand routine vaccination and other health activities, which means the legacy of polio eradication will live beyond the disease itself.

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The eradication of smallpox was possibly the greatest victory of science over disease in the history of mankind.

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Brilliant sees the convergence of his experience in networks, technology and disease eradication in mystic terms.

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Mr Toole - who is in Pakistan to meet senior government and UN officials - has reiterated Unicef's "commitment to the eradication of polio" and emphasised the need urgently to improve the battle against the spread of the disease.

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In December, 1966, Bill Foege was working as a consultant for the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) on smallpox eradication in a medical mission in a remote part of eastern Nigeria.

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