Bangladesh pushes back typhoid vaccination campaign to October

Bangladesh has rescheduled its nationwide typhoid vaccination campaign for children and adolescents, citing delays in preparation caused by a recent strike by health assistants.

The programme, which was originally set to begin on Sept 1, will now start on Oct 12 and continue for 18 working days, health officials said on Saturday.

Around 50 million children and adolescents under the age of 15 will receive the free vaccine under the Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI). The campaign will be conducted in two phases, first through school-based vaccination camps and then at EPI centres for those who missed their shots.

The vaccine will be administered as a single-dose injection, which provides protection against typhoid for three to seven years.

“The health assistants’ strike delayed preparations, which is why the new date has been set. The campaign will begin on the 12th of October and run across schools for 10 days, followed by another eight days at vaccination centres. All other arrangements remain unchanged,” said EPI Manager Abul Fazal Md Shahabuddin Khan.

The vaccines, supplied by Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, were procured from India and have already arrived in the country. Officials said the vaccine meets World Health Organization standards and has already been introduced in several countries in the region, including Nepal and Pakistan.

“This is a fully tested vaccine, and no trial phase is needed before rollout,” Shahabuddin said.

Typhoid, caused by the Salmonella Typhi bacteria, is transmitted through contaminated food or water. Officials hope the large-scale vaccination campaign will reduce infection rates significantly across the country.

Online registration for typhoid vaccination started on Aug 1 through (vaxepi.gov.bd/registration/tcv).

After registration, a vaccine card must be downloaded, which needs to be carried to the vaccination centre on the scheduled day.