Vaccination Week in the Americas 2020: Final Report

Abstract

Vaccination Week in the Americas (VWA) is a regional initiative that aims to promote equity and access to vaccination in all countries in the Region of the Americas. The participation of the countries of the Americas in the VWA is flexible. The VWA platform can be adapted to national, regional, and global contexts to select activities that best meet local public health priorities. At the heart of this initiative are countries' relentless efforts to reach vulnerable population groups with little or no access to regular health services, such as those living in urban peripheries, rural or border areas, and indigenous communities, with vaccination. With these efforts, VWA has contributed to strengthening national immunization programs in the countries of the Region. The initiative has also provided a substantial platform for promoting the importance of vaccination, keeping the issue at the top of the political agenda, and continuing to attract media attention. VWA has become a shining example of what can happen when countries come together, across borders, cultures, and languages, with the goal of improving the health of their populations. In 2020, from 25 April to 2 May the Region of the Americas celebrated its 18th Vaccination Week in the Americas (VWA) campaign and its 9th World Immunization Week. The 2020 regional slogan was "Love. Trust. Protect. #GetVax". In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, PAHO emphasized that VWA is a flexible platform and the activities developed under its framework can be adapted to the different local, national, regional, and global contexts. 45 countries and territories of the Americas planned to participate in VWA. However, many countries postponed their activities due to the global epidemiological situation of the COVID-19 pandemic and the lockdown policies implemented in the countries.