In Niger, 28% of adults are fully vaccinated against COVID-19. A 7th COVID-19 vaccination campaign, launched in mid-October, aims to vaccinate 2/3 of the over-18 population by year’s end.
The southern region of Maradi has the best vaccination coverage in the country, with 40% of the adult population fully vaccinated against COVID-19.
Community and religious leaders are at the heart of this success. Their influence is instrumental in combating rumours about vaccines circulating on social media and through word-of-mouth.
Before each new campaign, they are pressed into service, informing the population of the upcoming availability of vaccines, and their safety and effectiveness in protecting against severe illness and death from COVID-19.
The EU and its humanitarian partners ensure that awareness of COVID-19 vaccination is strengthened, and that rumours and misinformation do not take root among communities.
In 2021, the EU allocated €100 million to support vaccination campaigns in Africa, including Niger. At the end of the 7th COVID-19 vaccination campaign, the Maradi region had covered nearly 65% of its adult population, up from 40% before.
Sani Touraki, representative of the Sultanate of Katsina, receives visitors. Like other community leaders in Maradi, he is approached by the health authorities before each COVID-19 vaccination campaign to help alleviate reluctance among the population.
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Malama Balki Rabiou, head of a network of some 50 Koranic schools, laughs as she recalls rumours about COVID-19 vaccines. “Whenever I get the chance, I explain that measles and meningitis have become rare thanks to vaccines.”
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“Leaders are helping to spread acceptance that vaccines are a tool to build herd immunity and stop the pandemic,” says Dr Jamila Arzika Lélé, head of an integrated health centre in Maradi.
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In each health centre, monitoring committees made up of representatives of young people, women, religious groups, and local elected officials are involved in the fight against misinformation.
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With EU humanitarian support, awareness of the importance of vaccination has been strengthened: more than 6,800 town criers and 3,300 community outreach workers have been deployed throughout Niger to mobilise local communities.
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“I heard a lot of rumours about these vaccines, but the community outreach people came to my house and told me not to worry, that the vaccines protected. So I came,” says Chérifa Fassouma Laoulia, a resident of Maradi.
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“The success of the COVID-19 vaccination campaign in Maradi is due to the leadership of local health authorities and the keen involvement of community and religious leaders,” says Dr Abani, head of the WHO sub-office in Maradi.
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Story by the World Health Organization (WHO).
Publication date: 23/03/2023
