Gagnoa, The JHU/CCP Breakthrough Action project, a USAID-funded project, explained its decision to materially and financially support through sport, a mass vaccination awareness program against Covid 19, as well as routine vaccination, in the health district of Gagnoa 2, and in particular in the sub-prefecture of Ouragahio, during a public event on Saturday May 13, 2023 at the cultural center of Ouragahio.

“We felt a relaxation of health activities at the level of the area,” said the project’s Gagnoa representative, Ago Emmanuel, coordinator of HIV-AIDS, Covid 19 and rabies disease activities. He said the finding showed that people no longer go to health centers for vaccines and are only interested in vaccination when the chief medical officer sends his team to the field.

While waiting to conduct a field survey to assess the reasons for this relaxation, he said, the project notes that the information and awareness campaign has the advantage of maintaining the population’s interest in vaccination. and remind them that they must continue to protect themselves and follow the best practices recommended by health authorities.

Mr. Ago confided that with the support of the health district of Gagnoa 2, a vaccination awareness program is held in all the sub-prefectures of Ouragahio, Dignago, Guibéroua, to support the district for the activities of vaccination coupled with HIV.

Through sport and the support of teachers who constitute a link with students and parents of students, he hopes to “boost” the activity with the Urban Health Center of Ouragahio, where the health district launched the tournament at the level of the area.

Deploring the low rate of vaccination coverage against Covid 19, of the order of 59% in the health district Gagnoa 2, where the State expects 70% to be able to achieve collective immunity, the departmental director of health Gagnoa 2, Dr Gnamien Denis, welcomed the collaboration with the JHU/CCP Project Breakthrough Action, and the organization of this football tournament, which will help raise awareness.

Behind this maracana football tournament, it is a question of galvanizing the populations, encouraging them to be vaccinated against Covid, against routine vaccination and in young girls, to fight against cancer of the cervix. insisted the health official.

Vaccination is the same almost everywhere, where there are difficulties, especially with Covid 19, where parents are still thinking of human inventions to harm their health, said Dr Gnamien. In Ouragahio, as in all the sub-prefectures of its health district, the vaccination table is the same and this prompted the setting up of this tournament,’ he said.

Source: Agence Ivoirienne de Presse