Five-year Experience of African Vaccination Week Implemented by the WHO Regional Office

Abstract

The 5 th edition of the African Vaccination Week (AVW) kicked off in Lusaka, Zambia, on 23 April 2016, the same day as did the 4th World Immunization Week (WIW), and vaccination week in other WHO regions. The theme was “Save lives, prevent disabilities, vaccinate!”. The aim was to draw attention to the need to attain universal immunization coverage in the African Region by closing the immunization gap, while also celebrating the important polio eradication milestone reached in the African Region. Twenty-eight (59.6%) of the 47 countries in the African Region celebrated the AVW within the regionally set dates of 24 th to 30 th April 2015. However, given its flexibility, the celebration continued until September in 15 other countries in the Region. Three countries, namely Comoros, Gabon, and Cape Verde did not join the celebration for the 2015 edition of the AVW. Countries used the opportunity to introduce new vaccines into their routine immunization. Populations, hitherto unreached with basic health services were reached with needed services, such as vitamin A supplementation, deworming, and catch up immunization services. The programmes promoted awareness of the benefits of vaccines and the rights of communities to demand vaccines and immunization services to save lives and prevent disabilities. The number of participating countries rose steadily from 40 in 2011 to 43 and 46 countries in 2013 and 2014 respectively. The number ranged from one intervention integrated with AVW in 17 countries to 5 interventions integrated with the AVW in three countries. In 2015, 67.4% of the participating countries integrated other interventions with AVW activities.

Decline in Vaccine-Type Streptococcus pneumoniae Serotypes Following Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine Introduction in Madagascar

“…The decrease in total hospitalizations could be due to the impact of Rotarix, introduced in May 2014, on diarrhea as well as the impact of PCV10 [ 11 ]. Also, during the evaluation period, the country has been implementing various child survival interventions during the annual African vaccination week (like deworming and vitamin A supplementations, breast feeding, and hand washing) [ 12 , 13 ].…”

Impact of 10-Valent Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccine on Bacterial Meningitis in Madagascar

“…We acknowledge that our findings can be influenced by the general progressive improvements in prevention, healthcare, and treatment during the evaluation period. The country has been implementing various child survival interventions during the annual African vaccination week where mass deworming and vitamin A supplementations are implemented and the benefits of breastfeeding, handwashing, and minimizing indoor air pollution are highly promoted (Ministry of Health Madagascar, unpublished data) [10, 11].…”