Image: Sudan vaccination catch-up campaign in January 2023. © WHO Uganda

January EYE Strategy Newsletter 

The EYE story 

See the visual story map of our journey from 2017 to date, told through the photos, films and podcast episodes we have created along the way.  

Click here to view.

Image: Sudan vaccination catch-up campaign in January 2023. © WHO Uganda

Press release 

Since the publication of this press release, nine of the states have completed their yellow fever vaccination catch-up campaigns, with implementation in the three remaining states planned for mid-February 2023. 

Sudan launches a catch-up campaign against polio and yellow fever.  

The Federal Ministry of Health in Sudan, in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) has launched its catch-up vaccination campaigns to vaccinate children against yellow fever and polio. 

This campaign will cover the Darfur states, as well as Sennar state, in efforts to increase vaccination coverage and further vaccine equity in all parts of Sudan by reaching out to cover the birth cohort who missed their routine polio IPV vaccine. For this reason, the main target of this campaign will be children between 5 and 7.5 years of age. 

To read more, click here. 

Country update

Preventive mass vaccination campaigns (PMVCs)

Uganda     

In addition to the successful introduction of the YF vaccine into Uganda’s routine immunization (RI) programme, the country has planned a multi-year PMVC, which is now due to start in March 2023.

Nigeria    

The YF PMVC in Bayelsa state has been postponed until the first quarter of 2023 due to significant floods in the state. 

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC)

The YF PMVCs have commenced in accessible parts of Sud Kivu, including urban areas. Implementation is continuing in the remaining provinces of Sud Kivu and Maniema. Vaccination activities are now complete in Sankuru. 

Further YF PMVCs are planned in Lomami, Kasai, East Kasai and Central Kasai for 2023. Overall, the campaigns will aim to protect around 28 million people. 

Have you seen our film on the vaccination campaigns in the DRC in 2021?

Click here to view. 

EYE on Yellow Fever – podcast 

If you haven’t listened to the ‘EYE on Yellow Fever’ podcast yet, click on the image above for a montage of the best bits.

We have featured experts from all over the world on climate change, epidemiology, virology, the Amazon rainforest and even outer space. 

We would like to thank our partners for supporting this project and for contributing as guests. To listen to the full series, click here. Or listen via your favourite podcast app. Click here. All the episodes are also now available on YouTube. Click here to view. 

Work with EYE 

Medical Officer 

We are recruiting a Medical Officer to liaise with WHO regional and country offices and relevant programmes in WHO Headquarters. Amongst other key duties, you will provide surveillance and evidence-based risk prioritization analysis, expert advice, technical assistance, and support to enhance yellow fever surveillance principles, data collection, and timely use. 

You will also provide technical input to EYE implementation, monitoring and evaluation. To read more about these and other responsibilities, please click here. Use the same link to apply before the deadline of February 24th, 2023, 22:59 Central European Time.

Please note this vacancy notice may be used to fill other similar positions at the same grade.  

Consultant - EYE Strategy Resource Mobilization 

We are also recruiting a consultant to support resource mobilization activities including: 

• develop a business case for yellow fever interventions;
• develop funding proposals;
• provide advocacy expertise to enable attainment of financial, technical, and non-financial resources for the global Eliminate Yellow fever Epidemics (EYE) strategy. 

To read more about these and other responsibilities, please click here. Use the same link to apply before the deadline of February 24th, 2023, 22:59 Central European Time.

We have a number of new positions coming up within the EYE Secretariat. Please subscribe to this newsletter to be informed. Please also forward it to anyone in your network that may be interested in working with us.

Publications  

Seventeenth meeting of the WHO Vector Control Advisory Group 

Overview

Experts from the WHO Vector Control Advisory Group (VCAG) met in a hybrid meeting with product developers, innovators and researchers from 3 to 6 October 2022 for the 17th VCAG meeting. This recently-published report details the proceedings and outcomes of the meeting, including advice provided to applicants working on interventions in the following intervention types: sterile males, population suppression induced by gene drive, insecticide treated nets, endectocides and spatial repellents. 

Click here for the full report.