Regional directors in four northern regions have bemoaned the low uptake of vaccination among young people, saying vaccine hesitancy persists among that demographic.
Ohangwena, Oshana, Oshikoto, and Omusati accounts for the largest proportion of the country’s eligible population but have been recording the lowest vaccination rates countrywide after Zambezi Region.
By 20 December 2021, Ohangwena had fully vaccinated 13 per cent of its target population of 164 102, while Oshana had fully vaccinated 18 864 people or 14.9 per cent of its 126 374-target population, Oshikoto has vaccinated 15 per cent and Omusati 16 per cent. These are below the national average which stands at 22.3 per cent.
The low uptake in these regions prompted the Ministry of Health and Social Services in partnership with the Namibian Broadcasting Corporation to design a festive season campaign specifically for the four northern regions.
Giving live updates on NBC on Monday, Oshana Health Director Johanna Haimene said the region partnered with different communities’ leaders including youth groups, however vaccination uptake remains low.
“The greatest percentage of those vaccinated are of elder people. Young people are the lowest and I think we need to develop strategies targeting young people. They are the ones using social media and this is where the misconception and misinformation are. Older people listen to radio and they attend community engagement meetings where they ask for clarity but young people are not attending,” Haimene said.
Speaking at the same platform, Ohangwena Chief Medical Officer Dr Odon Nkongolo said conspiracy theories dominating on social media are denting efforts and are large contributors to young people refusing to get vaccinated.
He said some of the strengths of the regions have been partnership with different leaders including traditional and religious leaders and making use of the radio as a way to reach people and spread information.
“But we do not have a strong presence on social media which is where most of these misconceptions are being spread. We have good presence on traditional but not on social media which is a critical platform being used by many people especially the young,” he said.
Oshikoto Health Director Joshua Nghipangelwa said the pandemic has been a learning process and requiring constant re-evaluation of initiatives. He said it is their hope the expanded vaccination programme to include adolescents under age 18 will boost uptake and help reach herd immunity.
Source: The Namibian Press Agency
