Gavi increases support to reach all children with immunisation in the Central African Republic

Gavi to increase its financial support to strengthen data systems, bolster health workforce and engagement at community level, and foster innovation for enhancing outreach to better identify and reach missed children.
Announcement follows discussions on key priorities with Government and partners during a two-day visit by Gavi CEO Dr Sania Nishtar and senior Gavi leadership to the Central African Republic.
Central African Republic President Faustin-Archange Touadéra: “Investing in prevention is the smartest use of our limited health resources and within this investment, vaccination is the best buy to protect our children. My goal is to ensure everyone is protected against life-threatening diseases even in the hardest to reach regions of our country.”
Minister of Health Dr Pierre Somse: “The announcement today will consolidate health system support towards three priority areas which have the maximum potential of impact to serve the needs of our population.”
Dr Sania Nishtar, Gavi CEO: “Gavi’s mission is to ensure every child has access to the transformative and lifesaving power of vaccines. We welcome CAR’s positive and proactive approach to accepting results from a recent survey and their commitment to build data systems as the foundation for increasing immunisation coverage. This additional investment is a testament to our commitment to collaborate towards these critical country-led goals.”

Geneva/Bangui, 4 April 2024 – Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance announced today it will increase its support to strengthen data systems, human resources, and community engagement for immunisation in the Central African Republic (CAR).

The commitment follows dialogue with His Excellency President Faustin-Archange Touadéra, Prime Minister Félix Moloua, Minister of Health Dr Pierre Somse and Alliance partners during a two-day visit to CAR by Gavi CEO Dr Sania Nishtar in her first visit to a Gavi-implementing country since taking on the role in mid-March.

“Investing in prevention is the smartest use of our limited health resources and within this investment, vaccination is the best buy to protect our children. My goal is to ensure everyone is protected against life-threatening diseases even in the hardest to reach regions of our country,” said H.E. President Touadéra.

In consultation with Alliance Partners representatives in CAR, Gavi and the Ministry of Health aligned on three key health systems priority needs for investment supporting immunisation: data, health workforce and engagement at community level. Repurposing of existing funds would amount to an additional three million USD in support of these three country-led priorities jointly identified in Bangui.

Among topics discussed were recent coverage survey findings in the Central African Republic, and the Ministry of Health’s proactive approach to utilizing data insights for strengthening routine immunisation. The discussions underscored the importance of data-driven decision-making for impactful results, particularly to better identify zero dose and under-immunised children across the country.

In response to requests from CAR leaders including Minister of Health Dr Somse to strengthen this effort, Gavi will be making an additional significant investment in District Health Information System (DHIS2) to help the country establish a solid data foundation for its immunisation work. The aim is to leverage data insights from these enhanced systems and ensure no child is left behind.

“Gavi’s mission is to ensure every child has access to the transformative and lifesaving power of vaccines,” said Dr Sania Nishtar, CEO of Gavi. “We welcome CAR’s positive and proactive approach to accepting results from a recent survey and their commitment to build data systems as the foundation for increasing immunisation coverage. This additional investment is a testament to our commitment to collaborate towards these critical goals.”

Gavi and the Central African Republic have been collaborating on routine immunisation and outbreak response in the country since 2002, working in close partnership with Alliance partners including the World Health Organization and UNICEF.

“The announcement today will consolidate health system support towards three priority areas which have the maximum potential of impact to serve the needs of our population”, said Minister of Health Dr Pierre Somse.

Notes to editors

About Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance

Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance is a public-private partnership that helps vaccinate more than half the world’s children against some of the world’s deadliest diseases. The Vaccine Alliance brings together developing country and donor governments, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the World Bank, the vaccine industry, technical agencies, civil society, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other private sector partners. View the full list of donor governments and other leading organisations that fund Gavi’s work here.

Since its inception in 2000, Gavi has helped to immunise a whole generation – over 1 billion children – and prevented more than 17.3 million future deaths, helping to halve child mortality in 78 lower-income countries. Gavi also plays a key role in improving global health security by supporting health systems as well as funding global stockpiles for Ebola, cholera, meningococcal and yellow fever vaccines. After two decades of progress, Gavi is now focused on protecting the next generation, above all the zero-dose children who have not received even a single vaccine shot. The Vaccine Alliance employs innovative finance and the latest technology – from drones to biometrics – to save lives, prevent outbreaks before they can spread and help countries on the road to self-sufficiency. Learn more at www.gavi.org and connect with us on Facebook and Twitter.

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