By Yunus S Saliu
The Ministry of Health will Wednesday, 1st March 2023 kick start its round 9 Covid-19 vaccination campaign as part of its strategy to meet the 70% of the population vaccinated.
The 10 days Covid-19 campaign will run from the 1st to the 10th of March countrywide as it targets all regions across the country.
The prioritized and targeted people for the vaccination include healthcare workers; persons with pre-existing conditions – hypertension, diabetes, immunocompromised; security personnel; teachers; elderly
persons above 65 years and above; hoteliers and individuals persons from 12 years and above.
Among strategies to reach more people for the vaccination include fixed teams – based in health facilities; outreach/mobile teams – visiting communities, institutions, town centers, markets, and POEs including the house-to-house where necessary; political rallies/gatherings – utilizing political meetings to administer vaccines and religious gatherings – leveraging religious meetings to deliver vaccines such as Friday and Sunday sermons in various mosques and churches.
However, in an organized press briefing held at the Central Medical Store in Kotu on Friday, 24th February 2023, the Ministry of Health commended the media for their roles in the spread and creating awareness about Covid-19 while enjoined them to continue to create awareness through their media platforms, mobilize family members, schools, colleagues, and the community for vaccine uptake.
More so, the media should do everything to combat misinformation that spread through social media, and encourage the public to seek the right information from credible sources such as the Ministry of Health, WHO, and UNICEF. And as well refer public concerns to the nearest public health facilities or call the toll-free number 1025.
Meanwhile, the total number of cases in The Gambia is 12,593, with cumulative deaths of 372, and a case fatality rate of 3.0%.
The press briefing was attended by officials of the MoH, UNICEF and WHO.
