The State of the World’s Children 2023: For Every Child, Vaccination
The UNICEF recently unveiled its global flagship report, ‘The State of the World’s Children 2023: For Every Child, Vaccination,’ which provides a comprehensive overview of vaccine confidence and coverage around the world. The report highlights some worrying trends, including a decline in vaccine confidence in over a third of the 55 countries studied, with some notable exceptions.
Improved Vaccine Perception
China, India, and Mexico were among the countries that saw an improvement in vaccine perception, according to the report. This positive trend indicates the success of political and social commitment to vaccination drives.
Backslide in Childhood Immunization
The pandemic interrupted childhood vaccination almost everywhere, resulting in the largest sustained backslide in childhood immunization in 30 years. Factors such as access to misleading information and declining trust in vaccine efficacy have contributed to the growing threat of vaccine hesitancy.
Missed Vaccinations
The UNICEF report revealed that 67 million children missed out on vaccinations between 2019 and 2021, with the coverage levels decreasing in 112 countries. The number of measles cases doubled in 2022 compared to the previous year, and the number of children paralysed by polio was up 16% year-on-year in 2022.
Vaccination Efforts in Maharashtra
The Maharashtra government has a robust vaccination program that vaccinates nearly 2 million infants and 2.1 million pregnant women every year with routine immunization vaccines. The full immunization coverage of the state in the year 2022-23 is 100%, a testament to the government’s political and social commitment.
Vaccine Confidence in India
India has been highlighted in the report as one of the countries with the highest vaccine confidence globally. The report recognizes the success of the vaccine drive during the pandemic, which has built confidence and strengthened routine immunization systems to vaccinate every child.
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Month: Current Affairs – April, 2023
Category: Reports & Indexes Current Affairs