SLD RCA
01 - An unprecedented vaccination campaign is underway in the Central African Republic (CAR). The
objective? Vaccinate as many children as possible in the country against some of the most common
preventable diseases.
02 - In a country that was already a sanitary desert before the outbreak of violence in 2013, immu-
nization coverage is very low. Today, less than 15% of children are fully protected against childhood
diseases and epidemics are common.
03 - Although effective vaccines exist, Polio, tetanus, diphtheria, Whooping Cough, hepatitis B,
measles and certain forms of pneumonia and meningitis continue to kill children in CAR. The vaccina-
tion organized by MSF is a catch-up campaign, that is children only receive vaccines they should have
already received beforehand.
04 -MSF also supports the CAR’s National Program, which is supposed to vaccinate all children fol-
lowing a predefined timetable. Unfortunately difficulties of access, the failures of the health system
and the recent upsurge in violence have long interrupted the program.
05 - Before the campaign, awareness sessions are organized in the villages to announce the vaccina-
tion, convince parents to bring their children and explain possible side effects.
06 - Indeed, receiving so many doses at the same time is tiring for a child’s organism. Parents are in-
formed of possible side effects and paracetamol is distributed to them preventively.
07 - To reach as many people as possible and address the issue of vaccination in a fun and non-
threatening way, troops and actors have been hired to perform sketches, as part of MSF’s awareness
campaign. The show parodies the conversations of adults in a household ... and the public seems to
enjoy it!
08 - The day of the vaccination in Berberati, it seems that awareness has paid off ... Indeed, the cen-
ter attendance is very high. In five days, 14,000 children have been vaccinated.
09 - Some vaccines are oral, that is to say they must be ingested.
10 - Others are intramuscular. For all children of the world, injections are unpleasant. .
11 - In general, a bit of comfort is enough to make them forget the ordeal.
12 - During this campaign, the teams have also taken the opportunity to screen all children for mal-
nutrition. Detection is done by measuring the circumference of the upper arm with a strap.
13 - Vaccination is carried out in three rounds as some vaccines should be taken in multiple doses.
Vaccination cards allow for a monitoring of the immunization coverage of children. Around Berberati,
the campaign has mobilized 370 people and committed significant financial and logistical resources.
14 - To avoid families having to travel long distances, the campaign was held in over 40 different sites
in the city of Berberati and its suburbs. For example here, the Muslim quarter of Potopoto, which had
been ransacked during the crisis.
15 - Respecting the cold chain is a challenge when the outside temperature is around 40 ° C ... The
vaccine doses are placed in coolers on motorcycles to be sent to the vaccination sites.
16 - MSF has been present in Berberati since 2014, when the city was affected by violence, to help
the hospital support the influx of wounded. Since then, MSF teams are working in the general pedi-
atric unit as well as the nutrition, maternity and neonatology units and they help with treatment of
sexual violence victims at the University Hospital.