Current Affairs
Daily Bits

WHO unveils global immunization strategy

  • Posted By
    10Pointer
  • Categories
    World Affairs
  • Published
    1st May, 2021

A UN-led global immunization strategy was unveiled recently to reach more than 50 million children who have missed lifesaving jabs against measles and other diseases because of COVID-19 disruption.

Context

A UN-led global immunization strategy was unveiled recently to reach more than 50 million children who have missed lifesaving jabs against measles and other diseases because of COVID-19 disruption.

About the strategy

  • The strategy is launched by WHO UNICEF, GAVI.
  • Routine vaccination: To avoid multiple outbreaks of life-threatening diseases like measles, yellow fever and diphtheria, it must be ensured that routine vaccination services are protected in every country in the world.
  • The new global strategy has the potential to save 50 million lives within less than a decade.
  • The Agenda focuses on vaccination throughout life, from infancy through to adolescence and older age. If fully implemented, it will avert an estimated 50 million deaths, according to WHO - 75% of them in low- and lower-middle income countries.

Targets

  • Targets to be achieved by 2030 include:
    • Achieve 90% coverage for essential vaccines given in childhood and adolescence
    • Halve the number of children completely missing out on vaccines
    • Complete 500 national or subnational introductions of new or under-utilized vaccines  - such as those for COVID-19, rotavirus, or human papillomavirus (HPV)

Challenges in vaccination

  • A WHO survey showed more than one third of countries were still seeing disruptions to their routine immunisation services.
  • Around 60 mass vaccination campaigns were currently postponed in 50 countries, putting 228 million people, mostly children, at risk of diseases such as measles and polio.

Verifying, please be patient.

X