The Federal Minister for Health convened a high-level meeting to present a comprehensive roadmap for enhancing the performance of the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) with a primary focus on improving immunization coverage nationwide.
During the session, the Minister reviewed the current progress of the program and issued directives to launch a National Awareness Campaign, emphasizing the need to engage all major media houses and utilize every available media platform to disseminate messages on Routine Immunization and Vaccine-Preventable Diseases (VPDs). The campaign will be aiming to increase public awareness and community engagement.
Recognizing the importance of partnership and coordinated efforts, the Minister instructed that cooperation with development partners and donors should be further strengthened reaffirming the Ministry of National Health Services' commitment to enhancing Interagency Coordination and extending full support for the effective implementation of immunization initiatives. Emphasis was also placed on enhancing collaboration with provincial stakeholders and regularly reviewing programmatic progress. In this regard, coordination meetings with provincial counterparts will be convened at the earliest in the month of July to align efforts and accelerate implementation.
Furthermore, the Honorable Minister highlighted the urgent need for a robust Complaint Management System/Platform. This platform should not only serve as an essential tool for raising awareness about immunization services and health initiatives, but also ensure that whenever a person contacts the helpline, their vaccination-related concerns are promptly addressed and the process expedited through an effective response mechanism.
