By Hassan Zaggi
In an effort to increase and accelerate uptake of life-saving vaccines across the African Union member states, the African Union Commission, GAVI, the vaccine alliance and Africa Centre for Disease Control (ACDC) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).
Through the MoU, the three organizations have committed to increase access and accelerate the uptake of life-saving vaccines by leveraging their collective resources, expertise and expansive networks to collaboratively address a broad range of health issues.
- The three organisations including technical experts agreed to foster sustainable and equitable systems for immunisation, including reaching zero dose children, overcome barriers, and building a resilient health workforce; build public trust and confidence in immunization, including demand generation and social behavioural change, and align immunization-related communications and advocacy and strengthen diagnostic and disease surveillance capacity for epidemic-prone vaccine-preventable diseases.
They also align to realize what they described as the continental vision to expand vaccine manufacturing in Africa, including the facilitation of efficient regulatory pathways and timely authorisations of vaccines and efficient, effective pharmacovigilance.
“We have come together to give life to the tripartite MoU and secure the health of the continent of Africa.
“We have committed to work in synergy and give Africa tangible results for immunisation in the shortest time,” said Dr Ahmed Ogwell Ouma, Ag. Deputy Director General of the Africa CDC.
On his part, the Managing Director of Country Programmes Delivery at Gavi, Thabani Maphosa, said: “The work our organizations undertake is intrinsically linked, and it is critical that we have come together in service of the AUC’s continental vision for public health, the New Public Health Order.
“This week’s workshop was the time to turn our deep commitment to collaboration into a tangible plan of action. Gavi is proud to be a partner to the African Union Commission and Africa CDC, and we are excited to be expanding this partnership into so many aspects of our work.”
