UNICEF calls for action

….. To recover from declining immunization exercise and save children.

By Francis Maingaila
LUSAKA, (24 April 2023 Zambia24 )– UNICEF has released a report on the State of the World’s Children 2023, indicating that 67 million children globally have missed one or more vaccinations over the past three years due to poverty, marginalization, and gender disparities.
In Zambia alone, 324,619 children have not received any vaccines because vaccine programs have been interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the lack of public trust in scientific reasoning has further compounded the issue.

UNICEF Zambia Country Representative said Penelope Campbell called on governments to increase financing for immunization, prioritize funding for primary health care, and invest in female health workers, innovation, and local manufacturing to build resilient health systems.
To vaccinate every child, it is necessary to strengthen primary healthcare and support front-line healthcare workers.
The poorest, urban, remote, and marginalized communities are most affected, globally, with one in five children being zero-dose in the poorest households.

“The Government of the Republic of Zambia, through its Ministry of Health, is committed to continuing working towards improving vaccination coverage in the country, ensuring that every child, particularly the most vulnerable, has access to immunization services. Vaccines protect families, communities, and the whole nation, therefore, restoring immunity is our top priority,” explained Hon. Sylvia Masebo, MP, Minister of Health read on her behalf by Dr. Jacob Sakala National Expanded Programme on Immunization manager at a media briefing held at Raddison Blu in Lusaka this morning.

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