A donation of equipment to the Government of Burundi to help strengthen the healthcare system.
To help reduce the number of "under-vaccinated" and "zero-dose" children, UNICEF, supported by Gavi, has granted the Ministry of Health 14 vehicles, 37 computers and 147 smartphones.
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On Friday August 25, 2023, the Ministry of Public Health and the Fight against AIDS received a donation from UNICEF and Gavi, comprising 14 vehicles, 37 laptops and 147 smartphones. This donation will help accelerate the reduction in the number of "under-vaccinated" and "zero-dose" children, especially in health districts with low vaccination coverage rates compared with the national average.
"Vaccination is a real success story in terms of global health and development, saving thousands of lives every year," stressed UNICEF's Deputy Representative in Burundi, Nathalie Meyer, in her speech. She regretted, however, that challenges remain, particularly about measles and polio, even though the immunization rate in Burundi is performing well. In her view, further efforts are needed to boost immunization coverage and equity at national level. "This donation will help accelerate the Government of Burundi's efforts to reduce the number of "zero-dose" and "under-vaccinated" children, as part of its efforts to strengthen the health system," she added.
This donation will benefit health workers, who are working to ensure that the strategies deployed for routine vaccinations benefit children, thereby establishing the good performance Burundi has demonstrated for more than a decade.
The Minister for Public Health, Dr Sylvie Nzeyimana, expressed her appreciation of the donation, which testifies to the commitment of these two partners to support Burundi in its efforts to strengthen the health system, particularly in child immunization. She praised the long-standing support of these partners, which has enabled Burundi to achieve its current immunization success.
These computers have been distributed to the ‘’Autorité de Régulation des Médicaments à Usage Humain et des Aliments (ABREMA)’’ as part of the implementation of the electronic information and logistics management system (eSIGL/eLMIS) for pharmaceutical and health products.
The equipment was distributed to a few health districts with a high number of "zero-dose" children and a low vaccination coverage rate, compared with the national average. With this support, the Minister hopes that immunization indicators in these beneficiary health districts will rise. "I call on the heads of the beneficiary health districts to manage this equipment better, so that it remains in good condition," stressed the Minister of Public Health and the Fight against AIDS.
Since 2018, Gavi through UNICEF, has supported various activities including contracting civil society organizations as part of improving immunization coverage and equity in low-performing health districts. Gavi has also supported the replacement of kerosene refrigerators with solar-powered ones; the provision of motorcycles to supply health centers with vaccines, medicines, and other inputs; the construction of health district offices to improve working conditions for members of district management teams, and so on.
