Nandi County’s Immunization coverage has dramatically improved and has made enormous contribution to the County’s health and mortality rates among children due to vaccine-preventable diseases have been significantly reduced over the past three years.
Latest statistics show that 98.8% of two-year-old children were fully immunised in the three month reporting period ending December 2020. This was revealed by KANCO during GAVI HSS stakeholders meeting held in Kapsabet that brought together journalists, religious leaders, civil society and sub county EPI Coordinators.
Achievements of the County’s health sector and Immunization in particular are justified by commitment of high leadership, good partnership with development partners and grown home solutions to solve our population problems.
This has also been made possible with the support from Kenya Aids NGOs Consortium (KANCO) with the participation of communities, a better understanding of vaccine acceptance and hesitancy, the expansion of vaccination across the life course, approaches to improve immunization in rural areas, enhanced use of data and possible financial and non-financial incentives.
“Vaccines have an important role to play in comprehensive disease control, including the fight against antimicrobial resistance,” said Rachel Rop, the County EPI Coordinator.
Nandi County’s success is attributed to the inclusion of communities and civil society and faith based organizations and journalists who are crucial in making sure the vaccines and their delivery are acceptable, appropriate, and sustainable. Community-based organizations have stepped up their involvement in immunization and developed locally adapted solutions to removing social and cultural barriers, to re-create trust in immunization services, where it had waned, and to increase the locally adapted use of vaccines.
Present at the event were KANCO Regional Coordinator Steve Ikonya among other officials.