The Expanded Vaccination Program (EPI) announced, via a note sent to Actualité.CD, the launch of the national vaccination campaign against poliomyelitis, which will take place from June 13 to 15, 2024 across the entire national territory. This campaign aims to protect children against polio and stop the circulation of the virus.
During this period, vaccinators and mobilizers will visit households, churches, mosques, nurseries, schools, markets, parking lots and other gathering places to raise awareness and vaccinate children.
Services offered during this campaign include:
• Vaccination of children aged 0 to 5 years against poliomyelitis in 25 provinces (except Tanganyika).
• Vaccination of children aged 0 to 15 against poliomyelitis in the province of Tanganyika.
• Vitamin A supplementation for children aged 6 months to 5 years.
• Deworming of children aged 1 to 5 years (for children aged 12-23 months: half a tablet of Albendazole; for children aged 24-59 months: 1 tablet of Albendazole).
• Catch-up for children aged 0 to 15 months as part of the routine EPI.
“The implementation of the 2nd phase of the National Vaccination Days is confirmed for the period from June 13 to 15, 2024. The target of the vaccination campaign corresponds to children aged 0 to 59 months for all provinces, except for the province of Tanganyika where, given the epidemiological profile of poliomyelitis cases, the target is extended to children aged 0 to 15″, explains the EPI press release.
The bOPV vaccine will be used in 25 provinces for children aged 0 to 59 months, namely: Bas-Uele, Équateur, Haut-Katanga, Haut-Lomami, Haut-Uele, Ituri, Kasaï, Kasaï Central, Kasaï Oriental, Kinshasa, Kongo Central, Kwango, Kwilu, Lomami, Lualaba, Maï-Ndombe, Maniema, Mongala, North Kivu, North Ubangi, Sankuru, South Kivu, Tshopo and Tshuapa. For the province of Tanganyika, the bOPV will be used for children from 0 months to less than 15 years old.
The EPI recommends that parents respect routine vaccinations to strengthen the immune system of infants.
Since 2017, the DRC has been in a polio epidemic, with variant poliovirus types 1 and 2. To date, the country has a total of 846 recorded polio cases, including 830 paralyzed children. Children under 5 years old are most at risk, and the provinces of Tanganyika, Haut-Lomami and Maniema are the most affected.
Grace Guka
