Vaccines and immunization
Celebrating 50 years of Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI)
The COVID-19 pandemic severely disrupted essential immunization services in 2020 and DTP3 coverage was reduced to 85% in 2020 and 82% in 2021. Building on advances made during the Decade of Vaccines (2011–2020), a new global vaccination strategy, Immunization Agenda 2030 (IA2030), has been developed through a global collaborative process.
- Leaving no one behind by increasing equitable access and use of new and existing vaccines
- Pursuing vaccine-preventable disease elimination and control goals, regional priorities:
- Achieving measles and rubella elimination
- Sustaining polio-free status
- Maintaining MNT elimination
- Achieving hepatitis B control; and
- Reducing overall mortality and morbidity from vaccine-preventable diseases across the life-course.
- SP1. Immunization for PHC/UHC: Effective, efficient and resilient immunization services are accessible to all people as an essential part of primary health care, and thereby contribute to universal health coverage
- SP2. Commitment and demand: Immunization is valued and actively sought by all people, and health authorities commit to ensuring that immunization is available as a key contributor to the enjoyment of the highest attainable standard of health as a fundamental right.
- SP3. Coverage and equity: Full protection of immunization is realized by everyone, regardless of location, age, sex, socioeconomic status, ethnicity and gender-related barriers.
- SP4. Life-course and integration: All people benefit from recommended immunizations throughout the life-course, effectively integrated with other essential health services.
- SP5. Outbreaks and emergencies: Immunization programmes can (1) anticipate, prepare for, detect, and rapidly respond to vaccine-preventable and emerging disease outbreaks, and (2) ensure immunization service delivery during acute emergencies and among communities affected by conflict, disaster and humanitarian crisis
- SP6. Supply and sustainability: All countries have a reliable supply of appropriate and affordable vaccines of assured quality, and sustainable financing for immunization programmes.
- SP7. Research and innovation: Innovations for increasing the immunization programme reach and impact are rapidly made available to all countries and communities.
The impact of immunization program in the region will be monitored through a monitoring and evaluation framework. This monitoring and evaluation framework of the Region will play a key role in tracking progress against targets and in identifying priority areas for action. This framework outlines the targets set for each country in the Region on the impact indicators, and strategic priority areas.
The status of the various impact indicators and strategic priority area as of December 2022 are available at South-East Asia Regional Vaccine Implementation.
The WHO Regional Office for South-East Asia, together with partners, provides an overview of the performance of all countries of the Region as well as a summary of the activities undertaken at the regional level. These processes are undertaken in collaboration with partners to ensure continuing coordination and alignment.
The first Regional Vaccine Implementation Plan (RVIP) will run until 2026. Initially, activities will have a strong focus on the rollout of COVID-19 vaccination and recovery following the damage caused to immunization services and vaccine-preventable disease (VPD) surveillance by the COVID-19 pandemic. A more comprehensive mid-term review will be carried out in 2026 and will be used for the development of a revised RVIP for 2027–2030.
The Regional Strategic Framework and the Regional Vaccine Implementation Plan (RVIP) 2022–2026 provide a seamless transition from the Regional Vaccine Action Plan (RVAP) 2016–2020. They build on the effective models of collaboration and oversight established under RVAP, but with a stronger emphasis on creating continuous quality improvement cycles that strengthen national immunization programme performance and provide the essential foundation for achieving regional disease elimination and control goals.
