The drive forms part of an expandedimmunisation programme that has been carried out in Vietnam fornearly three decades.
Speaking at the function, theVice President stressed that the Party and State have paid dueattention to taking care of children over the past time through an arrayof activities.
The most worthy of note is the freeexpanded immuisation programme, which aims to prevent infectiousdiseases threatening children’s health and life, she said.
According to the official, with the support of internationalorganisations, the programme has proven its effectiveness in reducingthe rates of disease infections and mortalities among children.
Vietnam has become one of the countries that are able to produce 10 out of 12 vaccines used in the programme.
Vice President Doan called on socio-political organisations and thepublic, especially families of children aged from 1-14, to warmlyrespond to the campaign.
She also asked the healthministry to ensure the quality and safety of the campaign whilepartnering with the Ministry of Education and Training to popularise itat schools.
At the launching ceremony, YoussoufAbdel-Jelil, Chief Representative of the United Nations Children’s Fund(UNICEF) in Vietnam , hailed the Vietnamese Government’s efforts andcommitments to investing in vaccination in general and themeasles-rubella vaccination campaign in particular.
He suggested the county make the expanded immunisation programme a toppriority in the list basic medical interventions, saying all children inthe country must benefit from it.
The campaign hasbeen implemented from September 2014 to February 2015, targeting about23 million children between the ages of 1-14 throughout the nation.
Earlier, the drive was piloted in the northern province of Phu Tho,the southern province of Ba Ria-Vung Tau, the central province of ThuaThien – Hue and the Central Highlands province of Dak Lak.
As many as 757,000 children in 23 cities and provinces across the country have so far received measles-rubella shots.-VNA