Problems being encountered in Nigeria and India are putting the global efforts to eradicate polio, according to a report by the Boston Globe.

The transmission of the disease still occurs in both countries and is raising concern that the job might take longer than anticipated. Earlier this week, the World Health Organization’s (WHO) technical advisory panel on polio eradication discussed the cost of failing to eradicate the disease. It was decide that there was no other option that to push on with a program that has already taken up $4 billion since it started in 19 years ago.

If the program succeeds it would only be the second time that the World has eradicated a disease. The first, smallpox was eradicated in the 1979. However failure to achieve targets in four countries is hampering the efforts to eradicate the disease. Political problems in Nigeria, technical problems in India and the ongoing war on terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan have been cited the challenges facing the WHO.

However the program has its critics, with many questioning whether, a total eradication is possible, and that the global community should be concentrating on controlling the disease in areas in which it is still being spread. Instead they argue they are more life threatening diseases in the underdeveloped nations that required more attention.

There is also the danger that donor countries to the program might begin to have doubts themselves that the objective can ever be reach, which targets having been missed in 2000 and 2005, and last year a 2007 target was announced.

Leaders in Nigeria, India, Afghanistan and Pakistan are now being persuaded by the WHO and others to give more attention to putting in place better immunization programmes to eliminate another one of the World’s diseases.