Covid booster campaign sees poor response

The government is now in a dilemma over the fresh procurement of Covid-19 vaccine due to the poor response to its booster dose inoculation campaign that started last month amid a surge in infection.
Based on official estimations, Bangladesh needs over 25 million doses of Pfizer vaccine for vaccinating people (booster doses -3rd and 4th doses), including the high-risk group.
The government has a stock of only over 0.7 million Pfizer doses having an expiry date in February 2025, including over 46,000 to be expired in August of this year, according to a document of the Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) obtained by the FE.
Now, a situation has emerged that over 25 million doses got due as booster doses in 2024-25, but the existing handful of stock is feared to be expired as people show little response to the ongoing vaccination campaign. The latest data showed that a total of 13 people took 3rd (booster) doses and 144 people took 4th (booster) doses on Sunday. Till date, over 5 million people have taken 4th dose, according to the DGHS vaccine update.
Meanwhile, the government has 1st dose coverage of 88.61 per cent and 2nd dose coverage of 83.49 per cent against the total population of the country, meaning huge doses due for booster doses.
Booster dose coverage -- 3rd dose 4th dose (high priority) against total population stood at 40.25 per cent and 2.97 per cent respectively, according to another DGHS document.
"People are not seen enthusiastic to take Covid doses," Prof Dr Md Shahadat Hossain of the DGHS told the FE.
"In my observation--we see the remaining (in stock) vaccines are feared to be expired. Then what we will do with fresh shipment if people are indifferent to taking Covid jabs," he questioned.
"A person can take a Covid booster dose after six months of first inoculation (1st dose). But people tend not to take vaccines until the infection (coronavirus) situation takes a turn for the worse," he added.
DGHS officials talking to the FE said Bangladesh has already applied to COVAX, Gavi for over 62 million doses of Pfizer/BioNTech.
Dr Mohammad Nizam Uddin, member secretary of the Covid-19 Vaccine Management Task Force at the DGHS, told the FE, "We don't have any vaccine shortage. Over six million Covid Pfizer vaccines are expected to reach by April or May this year." But, people have to take those jabs, he said, pointing to the low response to the booster campaign.
The government expert team and public health specialists have already suggested inoculating Covid booster doses to eligible people, certainly to the high-risk persons to build restraint.
Prof Dr Hossain of the DGHS said his office is working and running a campaign to make people aware of taking vaccines as a pre-protection measure against deadly Covid-19.
"But, we cannot force people to take Covid jabs," he clarified. Public health expert and virologist Dr Mushtuq Hussain suggested preparing a list especially on those who didn't take a single dose of Covid vaccine.
"Covid would remain a public health concern for people across the globe. We need to prepare a list of citizens who didn't take 1st and booster doses and run special campaigns for them to bring them under coverage," he suggested as he feared infection could see a rise after February this year.
"We should conduct study to show how vaccines develop strong immune systems against Covid-19 and save lives and compare between people who take vaccines and people who don't," he explained.
Surokkha App of DGHS provides facility to register for vaccination for the people. But registration for inoculation using NID halted as the contract between DGHS and NID server ended last year.
There was a trio-party agreement among DGHS, NID server authority and the Department of Information and Communication Technology that ended in the first of 2023. And, the contract couldn't be renewed due to financial issues, according to DGHS officials.
Prof Dr Hossain of the DGHS, however, said fresh registration can be done by using birth registration or passport information.

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