UNICEF, Facebook promote immunisation
Even though the novel coronavirus pandemic has disrupted most systems, the UN children’s arm has joined hands with a social media giant Facebook to reach out to people and spread information about vaccination and its benefits.
“In countries such as Pakistan, additional roadblocks as a result of the pandemic have been compounded by an existing hesitancy in some communities to vaccinate children as well as global disruptions to the delivery of immunisations,” said United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) Representative in Pakistan Aida Girma on Monday.
She said that UNICEF partnered with Facebook as they worked with the government to spread awareness about the benefits of vaccines.
Facebook Data for Good Associate Research Manager Kadeem Khan said the project was conducted in three stages and featured a campaign with the hashtag #VaccinesWork to promote the continuation of vaccinations for children during Covid-19, particularly at healthcare centres.
“To support UNICEF in their effort to increase routine immunisation, we leveraged insights from the Facebook platform and tested the effectiveness of various types of content,” Kadeem said.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 15th, 2020.