Braving the odds to provide immunization services in a fishing community, Cameroon

Immunization is a success story for global health and development. It is an intervention that has saved millions of lives every year. Each year, over 116 million infants – 86% of all infants born in that year – are reached by immunization programs across the globe. This high coverage has drastically reduced deaths from major killer diseases like pneumococcal pneumonia, diarrhea, cervical cancer, typhoid, cholera, and meningitis. But benefits of immunization are unevenly shared. Many communities; often the poorest, the most marginalized and the most vulnerable; in fragile, conflict-torn settings; or remote rural communities have poor access to immunization services. Each year, 20 million infants do not receive a full course of even basic vaccines, and many more miss out on newer vaccines. Of these, over 13 million receive no vaccines through immunization programs – the “zero dose” children. One of such communities is Cap Cameroon, an island which is home to...