Attributable to the Federal Ministry of Health in Sudan
7 November 2019, Khartoum, Sudan – The final phase of the yellow fever vaccination campaign targeting more than 30 million people across Sudan was launched this week in Khartoum State.
Almost 7.5 million people are targeted in the 7 localities of Khartoum State, including displaced people living in camps and temporary shelters, as well as refugees and migrants.
With the launch of this final phase of the campaign, all people ages 9 months to 60 years living in Sudan’s 18 states will have been reached with the yellow fever vaccine.
Earlier this year, over 8.3 million people were vaccinated in Blue Nile, Gezira and Sennar states in the largest phase of the campaign.
The nationwide drive took place in 5 phases over a 5-year period which at times required intense negotiations by health partners to continue reaching and vaccinating people in need, despite a volatile political and security environment.
Investments in immunization, and our joint efforts to protect people in Sudan from yellow fever, will have significant results.
The vaccination campaign is led by the Federal Ministry of Health and supported by WHO, UNICEF and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, in line with the WHO Global Strategy for the Elimination of Yellow Fever Epidemics (EYE).
Notes to the editor
Sudan has a high presence of the Aedes aegyptai mosquito in almost all states, and borders 5 countries (Chad, Central African Republic, Ethiopia, Eritria and South Sudan) who also carry a high risk of yellow fever, exacerbated by cross-border population movements. These factors have previously resulted in at least four outbreaks of yellow fever in Sudan.
Based on WHO’s classification for yellow fever endemic countries in Africa, Sudan is classified as one of 31 high-risk African countries.
As no cure yet exists, yellow fever vaccine is the most important tool to control this fatal yet preventable disease. As per WHO recommendations that all endemic countries should include the yellow fever vaccine into their routine immunization programmes, Sudan plans to introduce the yellow fever vaccine into its national routine immunization schedule as of July 2020.
One single dose of the yellow fever vaccine offers lifetime protection.
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