Global Vaccine Action Plan: Report by the Secretariat

One year after the World Health Assembly endorsed the Global Vaccine Action Plan (GVAP) - a roadmap to prevent millions of deaths by 2020 through more equitable access to vaccines for people in all communities - Member States expressed support for the proposed Monitoring, Evaluation and Accountability Framework, which is linked to the Commission on Information and Accountability for Women's and Children's Health. Delegates supported the independent review process to assess and report progress and acknowledged the leadership demonstrated by the Strategic Advisory Group of Experts (SAGE) on immunisation in this process. Speakers highlighted the need to: mobilise greater resources to support low- and middle-income countries to implement the Plan and monitor impact; ensure that support to countries to implement the GVAP includes a strong focus on strengthening routine immunisation; and facilitate vaccine technology transfer.

Relevant disease-control programmes and technical experts were consulted in order to review and refine the existing indicators, develop operational definitions for each indicator, define the source(s) of data if they exist or how data may be collected, and establish baselines, milestones, and targets, as appropriate. Additional consultations were held by in person, by telephone or online, and feedback on the draft indicators was elicited from more than 600 people, representing different stakeholders, including representatives of civil society organisations and vaccine manufacturers.

According to this report, in order to ensure progress towards the achievement of the goals and objectives of the Decade of Vaccines, coordinated advocacy and communication strategies and consistent messages will be required. These efforts will need to demonstrate the value of vaccines and secure commitment from all stakeholders, including national governments and communities. The 5th GAVI Alliance Partners' Forum, which was held in Dar es Salaam, United Republic of Tanzania, in December 2012, provided an opportunity to advocate in support of the Decade of Vaccines (DoV( and to the participants with updates about developments since the endorsement of the global vaccine action plan by the Health Assembly. (Editor's note, November 2015: DoV, which was created to support the development of the GVAP, has been dissolved, but its work continues through the stakeholders that developed the GVAP.) As noted here, the World Health Organization (WHO) planned to work with the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases in the United States of America, the GAVI Alliance, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and other partners to develop a communications strategy for World Immunization Week, which took place April 24-30 2013. The Secretariat was asked to produce a new information pack including multimedia features, a campaign essentials toolkit for event organisers, and relevant info-graphics. It is noted that a Global Vaccine Summit was scheduled to be held in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, to coincide with World Immunization Week. The Global Vaccine and Immunization Research Forum, to be held approximately every 18 months, will serve as an opportunity to track progress and to stimulate debate on the research agenda of the Action Plan. The Forum will be co-hosted by WHO, the United States National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in close collaboration with other major stakeholders. The first Forum will be held in early 2014.

The Annex includes a table of all indicators elaborated as part of this plan, including communication-related objectives such as: "Individuals and communities understand the value of vaccines and demand immunization both as a right and a responsibility."