To increase vaccination coverage against COVID-19, Madagascar receives a visit from the COVID-19 Vaccination Delivery Partnership

ANTANANARIVO (Madagascar), 12 September 2022 – A mission led by the Senior Coordinator of the COVID 19 Vaccination Delivery Partnership (CoVDP), Mr. Ted Chaiban, who was appointed by UN Secretary General, Antonio Gueterres as Assistant Secretary-General on 17 February, 2022, arrives in Madagascar for a five-day official visit. He is accompanied by senior immunisation officials of the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), the World Bank (WB), and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID).

The main objectives of the mission are to assess progress in COVID-19 immunisation coverage, to brainstorm with the country’s stakeholders on innovative solutions, and to engage in effective joint policy advocacy at the highest level for accelerated COVID-19 immunisation.

In Madagascar, vaccination against COVID-19 started in May 2021. At the beginning of September 2022, 1.4 million people received their first dose of vaccination, equivalent to 5.4 per cent of the total population, against a national target of 51 per cent by 2023.

In order to meet this challenge and to mobilize all social, economic, cultural and governmental sectors to increase the number of people vaccinated against COVID-19 in Madagascar, the visit will be marked by a series of meetings with high-level State and government officials, development partners, humanitarian actors, civil society organisations, health professional associations, the private sector, as well as traditional and religious leaders, and the media. The delegation will also travel to the Analamanga and Atsinanana regions to see the ongoing immunisation activities and efforts, and to gain a better understanding of the major bottlenecks faced by the country.

Upon his arrival, Mr. Chaiban noted, “The Malagasy government, development and humanitarian partners, civil society organisations, as well as health and community workers on the ground are working hard to deliver vaccines to the population and to overcome key barriers to their uptake. Given the magnitude of the challenges, including the continued risk of food insecurity and the decline in routine immunisation of children, we need to identify all possible opportunities to integrate COVID-19 vaccination into other health interventions and to invest in vaccine delivery platforms that have broader benefits for the health system. We also need to continue to communicate clearly about the benefits of vaccination against COVID-19, particularly for high priority groups such as the elderly, people with co-morbidities and health care workers.”