Interactive guide to Rwanda’s historic roll-out of pneumococcal vaccine

RWANDAFAST TRACKAFFORDABLE VACCINESPARTNERSHIP

Rwanda's Health Minister Dr. Richard Sezibera delivers his country's first dose of pneumococcal vaccine to a baby boy. Hundreds of thousands of Rwandan infants will now receive protection from the world's leading infectious child killer. Copyright: GAVI/09/Thomas Rippe

In the 21st century, Rwanda’s Health Ministry has made remarkable progress in child immunisation, reaching 95% coverage with most routine vaccines. However, until April 2009, the Ministry had no access to a vaccine for the nation’s biggest child killer: pneumococcal diseases, such as pneumonia, meningitis and bacteremia.

Pneumonia alone accounts for nearly one in four child deaths in Rwanda, making it the number one cause of death among children younger than 5 years of age.

Now, thanks to a donation of the Prevenar vaccine by Wyeth pharmaceutical company through the GAVI Alliance, Rwanda has become the first developing nation to integrate a pneumococcal vaccine into its national immunisation programme.

Rwanda aims to vaccinate nearly all Rwandan children aged younger than one by the end of 2009, and all Rwandan infants on a routine basis thereafter. Families will receive the vaccine free of charge.