COVID-19 Response Monthly Report: November 2021

The report highlights the progress made in implementing technical interventions to accelerate COVID-19 vaccination in Madagascar. According to data extracted from the Direction du Programme Elargi de Vaccination (DPEV) database, a total of 141,290 persons were vaccinated during November 2021 within the 14 ACCESS-supported regions and Analamanga. This includes 140,875 persons fully vaccinated and 415 who received the first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine. The majority of vaccinated populations, 85,672 (61%), were reported from the 14 ACCESS-supported regions, while 55,618 were from the region of Analamanga. The report highlights the establishment of improved vaccinodromes in ACCESS-supported regions, with a target of administering 1,000,000 vaccine doses, corresponding to 3.55% of the population, for 2021. Innovative strategies were implemented to generate targeted demand, including holding special vaccination days and establishing 12 temporary vaccinodromes. In the DIANA region, more than 650 individuals were vaccinated at a temporary vaccinodrome, while in the Boeny region, over 1,300 students received doses of Janssen during a two-day vaccinodrome targeting academics. The report also highlights the implementation of vaccinomobile campaigns, with four vaccinomobiles vaccinating 9,219 targeted individuals in Analamanga. Periodic meetings were set up for monitoring and improving the implementation of these campaigns. In addition, 14 vaccinomobiles were available in the Atsinanana, Analanjirofo, Sofia, and Amoron’i Mania regions, which reached 45,780 individuals with vaccination throughout 14 districts in these four regions in November 2021. The report also discusses the support provided to the Ministère de la Santé Publique (MOPH) in the monitoring and supervision of COVID-19 vaccinations. This included joint supervision of vaccination sites in SAVA and Atsimo Andrefana to improve the quality of vaccination service delivery, as well as the training of 20 additional vaccination teams in three regions. Furthermore, the report highlights the support provided to the development and deployment of electronic recording and data management. The Direction du Programme Elargi de Vaccination (DPEV) has not yet made a decision on the potential use of QR codes for the vaccination cards, an approach supported by ACCESS. ACCESS also supported the DPEV in collecting data and improving data quality by focusing on DHIS2 COVAX during the capacity building of all regional information and communications technology (ICT) managers on DHIS2. The report also discusses the notification of adverse event following immunization (AEFI) cases in November 2021. Four regions reported a total of 39 AEFI cases, including 37 post-Janssen and two post-AstraZeneca cases. The report highlights the distribution of AEFI cases by region and type of vaccine, as well as the distribution of mild and severe AEFI cases by type of vaccine. In addition, the report highlights the risk communication and community engagement activities implemented in November 2021. This included broadcasting television and radio spots, as well as distributing brochures and setting up vaccinodromes in partnership with various organizations. The report also highlights the use of SMS messages to raise awareness on vaccination, as well as the support provided to the 910 Call Centre and the implementation of special vaccination days.