African Vaccination Week and World Immunization Week are recognized from April 24-30. With Africa needing to vaccinate 33 million children to get back on track and many parts of the world still playing catch-up from COVID-19, AIDS Healthcare Foundation urges governments everywhere to refocus public health efforts on getting citizens the immunizations they need to stay healthy.
“We launched our Vaccinate Our World campaign during the pandemic to address the crippling inequities in vaccine access between rich and lower-income countries. But now that COVID-19 has subsided somewhat globally, we must put attention and awareness back on vaccines overall, particularly in resource-constrained regions,” said Dr. Kate Ssamula, AHF South Africa Country Program Director and Director of Monitoring and Evaluation for AHF’s Africa Bureau. “We call on all nations, especially high-income countries, to ensure there are enough resources and vaccines available for everyone worldwide. We also urge heads of state to compel pharmaceutical companies to share vaccine patents where applicable. We can vaccinate our world – but we need the increased political will to make it happen.”
The Vaccinate Our World (VOW) campaign calls for pharmaceutical companies to share intellectual property, technology, and know-how, to increase production and access to medicines, diagnostics, and therapeutics—particularly during international health crises. AHF also supports the continued scientific advancements (e.g., Oxford’s new malaria vaccine) and encourages increased access and sharing of these lifesaving innovations with countries in need.
Learn more at VaccinateOurWorld.org.
