Impact of the Polio and Measles Vaccination Campaign on Zero-Dose Children
In Mananjary, the integrated vaccination campaign has helped reach zero-dose children in remote areas.
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Like all districts in Madagascar, Mananjary carried out the integrated polio and measles vaccination campaign combined with a major catch-up initiative for children aged 0 to 5, from October 15 to 19, 2024. In the Vatovavy region, all Basic Health Centers (CSBs) in Mananjary deployed both fixed teams based at health centers and mobile teams reaching communities located more than 5 km away. At CSB2 Andonabe, for instance, one fixed team and two mobile teams were mobilized.
Lezoma, a 44-year-old father of six children aged 3 to 14, lives in Ambalamainty, a remote hamlet about 15 km from the capital of Andonabe commune. Due to the distance from the CSB, families in this area face major challenges in accessing healthcare, including routine vaccinations.
Lezoma is also among the parents who have long resisted vaccination efforts. None of his six children had received a single vaccine dose. His reluctance stems from a fear of side effects and a lack of awareness about the importance and benefits of immunization.
On Wednesday, October 16, 2024, Lezoma brought his two youngest children—Kaela, aged 4, and Francia, aged 3—to CSB2 Andonabe to receive vaccines during the integrated polio and measles campaign, which was part of the broader catch-up effort. He was informed and convinced by a newly assigned community health worker to have his children vaccinated.
"The mobilizers explained the benefits of vaccination, and that’s what convinced me to come today," Lezoma shared. "I want my children to stay healthy, because when they get sick, it’s hard for us to manage the costs. Their mother is busy with household chores, so I made the decision to bring them myself."
Lezoma’s two children, Kaela and Francia, received both the measles and oral polio vaccines provided during the campaign, along with routine immunizations against diphtheria, tetanus, whooping cough, hepatitis B, Haemophilus influenzae type B, pneumonia, acute otitis media, and pneumococcal meningitis. They are among the zero-dose children reached at CSB2 Andonabe as part of the integrated polio and measles vaccination campaign and major catch-up initiative held from October 15 to 19, 2024.
With the support of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI), Rotary, and the Al Waleed Foundation, UNICEF is helping to generate demand, engage communities, and ensure vaccine delivery and coordination. These efforts target zero-dose and under-vaccinated children aged 12 to 59 months for routine immunization, as well as polio vaccination for children aged 0 to 59 months and measles vaccination for those aged 9 to 59 months.
