By Michael Gwarisa A total of 2.3 million people, aged one year old and above, are set to benefit from the Oral Cholera Vaccination (OCV) campaign that has been launched in Harare today. The campaign will be carried out on a  house-to-house, and cluster-to-cluster basis in 160 wards within 26 high-risk districts in seven provinces namely Harare, Mashonaland West, Mashonaland East, Mashonaland Central, Manicaland, Masvingo and Midlands. These districts are considered the main drivers of the outbreak. Officiating at the launch, Minister of Health and Child Care (MoHCC), Dr Douglass…
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All Hands On Deck To Reach Zero Dose Children With Immunisation In Africa
By Michael Gwarisa Despite immunisation being one of the most impactful and cost-effective public health interventions, responsible for preventing over 4 million deaths every year, the African continent is currently lagging behind other world regions in terms of access to vaccines. According to World Health Organisation (WHO) data, every year, more than 30 million African children under the age of five suffer from Vaccine Preventable Diseases (VPDs); and over half a million die due to limited access to immunisation services. This translates to 58 percent of global deaths from VPDs.…
Read MoreAfrica Warms Up To Single-Dose HPV Vaccine
By Michael Gwarisa Following the relaunch of the Human papillomavirus (HPV) programme by GAVI the Vaccine Alliance, in line with the new World Health Organisation (WHO) recommendations for a single-dose HPV vaccine, African states are embracing the administering of the one dosage in eligible populations. The developments come amidst indications that GAVI has set an ambitious target to reach 86 million girls with the HPV vaccine by 2025, as immunisation partners outline an ambitious plan to protect millions of girls in lower- and middle-income countries against cervical cancer. Speaking during…
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