Liberia has made progress with its COVID-19 vaccination program, having fully immunized 70% of the country’s eligible population since the program’s launch in March 2021.
The success of the nation has been attributed to effective COVID-19 steering committee management, multiple mass vaccination campaigns, and strong coordination between the government and its partners.
The nation is now making sure that its most vulnerable citizens are shielded from the virus, which could cause severe illness, hospitalization, and even death.
High-priority groups like healthcare workers, seniors over 60, people with co-morbidities, refugees, and people who have been forcibly displaced are all targets of efforts to increase vaccination rates.
An immunization day for COVID-19 is being planned for the Bahn High Extension School in Bahn, Nimba Country, in northeastern Liberia.
The school is located not far from the Bahn Refugee Camp, where about 10,000 refugees who fled post-electoral violence in Côte d’Ivoire more than ten years ago now call home.
The school is one of the locations providing community-based COVID-19 vaccination, providing education to both Liberian and refugee children.
“Our goal is to increase the number of community members who receive vaccinations. Oretha Vanwen, a community health worker who gives COVID-19 vaccinations to both refugees and members of the host community, asserts that this will ensure our collective safety.
A 57-year-old father of eight who lives in the Bahn refugee camp is in line to sign up for the COVID-19 vaccination: Bernard Manhan. In 2011, he fled to Liberia with his wife and kids.
When Côte d’Ivoire held parliamentary elections in 2011, Manhan participated as a member of an opposition party. He lost the majority of his family members in the ensuing violence.
He describes his perilous journey to neighboring Liberia for safety, saying “I was being hunted by rebels.” “I still worry about dying. This is the reason I have not made any efforts to go back home,” he says resolutely.
Coming to Liberia was a great relief for Manhan and his family as they now have access to essential health services, including COVID-19 vaccination.
Partners such as the European Commission’s Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (ECHO) is supporting efforts by World Health Organization (WHO) to ensure that people like Manhan are not left behind in the country’s efforts to protect vulnerable populations from severe impacts of the virus.
“When I heard of the COVID-19 vaccination I was not convinced that it was safe and feared becoming impotent, as those were the rumours circulating,” he says.
“However, my wife went ahead to get her jab, and nothing changed. She has remained very healthy. I then decided to get vaccinated, and I am happy I did,” he says, proudly displaying his COVID-19 certificate.
A fellow Ivorian refugee, Dekonti Elisabeth Gbe, was also unsure about the safety of the COVID-19 vaccine, which led her to be hesitant about getting a jab.
“Being a single mother, I feared for the worst,” she says. “What if I get sick and die because of the vaccine? What will happen to my children?” she says, as she recalls her earlier thoughts about the vaccine.
Gbe has chosen to proceed with the vaccination, though, after observing that many people at the Bahn refugee camp received the shot without experiencing any side effects.
“People who have taken the vaccine are well and healthy, including pregnant women. I am very convinced that the vaccines are safe,” she says confidently.
Nimba is one of the six counties that WHO is supporting to help accelerate COVID-19 vaccination. “WHO recognizes the strong collaboration and partnership with ECHO that has contributed to increasing vaccine uptake.
The critical role of Nimba’s local authorities, as well as ownership of the process by the communities, was instrumental in ensuring communities in Nimba are protected against COVID-19,” says Dr Peter Clement, WHO Representative in Liberia.
“If we continue in this manner, Liberia will make even greater strides in its efforts to protect the people who call it home.”