The biggest emergency yellow fever vaccination campaign ever held in Africa was launched in the city of Kinshasa in Democratic Republic of the Congo this week. With high risk of transmission of the mosquito-borne disease in this densely populated city, the vaccination campaign aims to protect as many people at risk as possible and stop the outbreak before the rainy season begins in late September.
WHO is supporting the Government and working closely with partners including UNICEF, World Food Programme, The DRC Red Cross Society, Save the Children and Mèdecins sans Frontières to roll out the campaign.
Dr Yokouidé Allarangar, WHO Representative in Democratic Republic of the Congo, launched the yellow fever vaccination campaign in Kinshasa on 16 August 2016. "This campaign requires an enormous effort from all, including community leaders and the people, so that we can stop the spread of this terrible disease," he said at the launch.
In the weeks leading up to the launch, WHO and UNICEF worked closely with the Ministry of Health to ensure wide community awareness of the campaign and the importance of getting vaccinated. The success of this social mobilization work can be seen by the huge numbers of people of all ages who came to be vaccinated against yellow fever on the first day of the campaign in Kinshasa.