Cholera vaccination campaign targeting 51.75 lakh people starts Aug 22

The government will launch a two-dose oral cholera vaccination campaign on August 22 in areas under seven police stations in Dhaka and seven upazilas across four districts, targeting 51.75 lakh people.

People aged one year and above will receive two doses of the vaccine, except pregnant women and those who are seriously ill, Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) officials said today.

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The first dose will be administered from August 22 to September 21, and the second from September 26 to October 25.

The seven police stations in Dhaka city are Lalbagh, Gandaria, Kadamtali, Kamrangirchar, Sher-e-Bangla Nagar, Khilkhet, and Tejgaon. The upazilas are: Brahmanbaria Sadar and Nabinagar upazila; Tarail, Karimganj and Hossainpur of Kishoreganj; Munshiganj Sadar; and Narayanganj Sadar.

In Dhaka, the vaccine will be administered at 308 centres, including regular Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) centres. At the upazila level, the vaccine will be administered at regular EPI centres and educational institutions.

Health Minister Sardar Md Sakhawat Husain will inaugurate the campaign at Nagar Bhaban in Dhaka’s Gulistan on Thursday, according to the ministry.

MA Muhit, state minister for health, will inaugurate the programme at Dhaka Polytechnic Institute in Tejgaon.

A joint study by the DGHS and icddr,b conducted in 2022-2023 identified 144 upazilas and areas under police stations in city corporations as "cholera hotspots", a DGHS official told The Daily Star.

Against this backdrop, the government prepared a five-year plan to vaccinate people in these vulnerable areas, he said.

Under the plan, the vaccination drive will begin in the 14 most vulnerable areas on August 22, the official said, adding that the vaccine is WHO-prequalified.