Shot@Life - Counting Down to World Immunization Week

Counting Down to World Immunization Week

March 27, 2012 BY Peg Willingham

World Immunization Week 2012 is officially less than a month away. Taking place from April 21 – 28, this week is an opportunity to highlight the importance of immunization in saving lives, celebrate the achievements of immunization programs and partners in promoting healthy communities, and encourage families to vaccinate their children against deadly diseases.

2012 has already been an incredibly successful year so far for global vaccines. Just last month the world celebrated as India marked a major success in its battle against polio by being removed from the World Health Organization's list of countries plagued by the crippling disease. Now, we’re watching as Africa gets us even closer to the goal of eradicating polio by going door-to-door to vaccinate more than 111 million children under the age of five against polio in just four days.

As we approach World Immunization Week, the momentum around global vaccines continues to grow. On April 26, Ghana will become the first GAVI-eligible country to rollout two new vaccines at same time against the leading causes of death in children under five – pneumonia and diarrhea.

The United Nations Foundation is adding to the energy around Immunization Week 2012 by officially launching our newest campaign, Shot@Life on April 26 in Atlanta, GA. The Shot@Life campaign will work to raise awareness and funding in the U.S. to get life-saving vaccines to children in developing countries. Shot@Life champions from across the country will be planning events in their hometown to help make this a national launch.

This year the countries and territories of the Americas will celebrate a milestone in public health, the 10th Anniversary of Vaccination Week in the Americas, which was initiated by the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) in 2002. We congratulate PAHO for its leadership as we prepare to celebrate the first World Immunization Week. This is the first time that every Region in the world will be participating. It is a cause for celebration; an initiative that began in the Americas will now be commemorated in all corners of the globe!

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