Peer-reviewed article
Reflections on 50 years of immunisation programmes in the WHO African region: an impetus to build on the progress and address the unfinished immunisation business
Amos Petu, Balcha Masresha, Charles Shey Wiysonge, Jason Mathiu Mwenda, Kwasi Nyarko et al. ·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This article reflects on 50 years of immunisation programmes in the WHO African region, examining progress toward global coverage targets and identifying persistent gaps. Despite improvements in childhood immunisation coverage, African countries still fall short of global targets, with significant disparities between nations. Key challenges include weak health systems, rapid population growth, vaccine hesitancy, inadequate financing, and COVID-19 disruptions. The article recommends accelerating implementation of the Immunization Agenda 2030 and securing sustainable funding with support from political leaders, health professionals, and other stakeholders.
Key points
- The region has achieved significant improvements in childhood immunisation coverage over 50 years but still falls short of global targets with disparities across countries
- Weak health systems, rapid population growth without corresponding service expansion, and vaccine hesitancy are major contributing factors to coverage gaps
- COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to immunisation programmes in the region
- Inadequate sustainable financing is a key barrier to achieving immunisation milestones
- Future progress requires leveraging new technologies, securing sustainable funding, and implementing the Immunization Agenda 2030
Limitations
This is a reflective review article based on available programme data rather than primary research, so it cannot provide detailed evidence on the effectiveness of specific interventions or quantify the impact of individual challenges on coverage gaps. The document does not present comparative analysis of immunisation strategies or outcomes across the specific countries mentioned.
Abstract
Immunisation is crucial to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals for maternal and child mortality reduction. As Africa marks the 50th anniversary of implementing immunisation programmes, it is imperative to review progress, address challenges and strategise for the future. Using available programme data, this article examines the progress made in achieving the immunisation milestones in the region, describes the success factors and lessons learnt and makes recommendations on how to immunise every African child in the coming years. The article concludes that despite significant improvements in childhood immunisation coverage, the region still falls short of global targets, with disparities across countries. Contributing factors include, among others, weak health systems, rapid population growth without corresponding increases in service delivery, vaccine hesitancy, inadequate sustainable financing and disruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Moving forward, efforts to attain the global immunisation coverage milestones should focus on building on the past progress, addressing the COVID-19 setbacks, leveraging new technologies and securing sustainable immunisation funding. This can be achieved by accelerating the implementation of the Immunization Agenda 2030 and the Addis Ababa Declaration on Immunization commitments. The support of all stakeholders including political leaders, public health professionals, the vaccine industry, regional organisations, academia, donors and healthcare workers is essential for this noble endeavour.