In order to introduce the 2 nd dose of the inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) to the National Immunization Calendar of Tajikistan, a round table was held on July 7, which was attended by the head of the Department of Sanitary and Epidemiological Safety, Emergencies and Emergency Medical Aid of the Ministry of Health and Social Protection of the Population Navruz Jafarov, World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office for Tajikistan Victor Olsavszky, representatives of development partners, heads of health institutions in Dushanbe, and media representatives.
It was noted that the fight and prevention of infectious diseases, including infections controlled by immunization, is one of the main areas of activity in the health sector of Tajikistan.
Also, it should be said that the prevention of infectious diseases using vaccines is very effective and relatively cheap, and in this way, the level of infectious diseases can be reduced through regular immunization.
It was emphasized that regardless of the fact that significant progress has been registered in the fight against and prevention of infectious diseases, the organization and implementation of preventive measures should be carried out regularly, qualitatively and using modern methods of the field.
In the fight against polio, the Ministry has completed a number of important activities for the implementation of the “Strategic Plan for the elimination of polio and implementation of the final stage” during the last years.
Thanks to the introduction of vital polio vaccines and mass immunization campaigns, Tajikistan has maintained its status as a polio-free country.
One of the tasks recommended by the “Global Strategic Plan for End-stage Polio Eradication for 2019-2023” for all countries of the world is to introduce the second dose of inactivated polio vaccine (IPV) into the Immunization Schedule.
Based on this initiative, the Ministry with the support of the Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization, WHO and UNICEF introduced the second dose of the IPV vaccine into the National Immunization Calendar from July 1. According to the new National Calendar, every child of the age of 9 months, i.e. children born from November 1, 2021, should visit the health facility of their place of residence and receive the second dose of the IPV vaccine.
