Immunization program support in the East African Community (EAC) in collaboration with the Gavi Alliance, Phase VIII VPT

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The project being examined is a continuation of the bilateral contribution to the global vaccination alliance Gavi. The proven project concept to promote routine vaccination in the East African Community (EAC), which is being carried out in cooperation with Gavi, is to be continued in an eighth phase. The aim of the project is to help reduce child mortality in the EAC. Specifically, vaccinations with pneumococcal, pentavalent, rotavirus and measles vaccines are to prevent severe respiratory and diarrheal diseases, which are still among the main causes of death among children in the EAC. Since the burden of disease is particularly high in poor population groups, poor families in particular benefit from the measure. The reduction in cases of disease relieves the burden on households (especially mothers) and health systems. The project is being carried out in cooperation with Gavi and supports the national vaccination programs (Expanded Programs of Immunization, EPI). The vaccines will be procured through the procurement mechanisms of Gavi and UNICEF and administered as part of the national vaccination programs in public and private health facilities to the main target group, newborns (up to one year of age) and a secondary target group, which mainly includes older children and young girls. Implementing the project through the EAC offers the decisive advantage of a regional platform with a strong commitment to coordinating and mutually strengthening the vaccination programs of the EAC states.