Global eradication milestone of smallpox was certified in which year?

• A. Global eradication certified in 1980
• B. 1960
• C. 1990
• D. 2000

Answer: (A)

Global eradication certification means the World Health Organization formally declares that a disease no longer circulates naturally anywhere in the world. For smallpox, after a long global vaccination and surveillance effort, the last endemic case occurred in 1977 (Somalia), and exhaustive verification followed. In 1980 the World Health Assembly announced that smallpox had been eradicated worldwide, marking the official certification. The other dates don’t fit because they fall before the completion of the campaign or far after the actual certification.