Risk Communication and Community Engagement (RCCE) Activities for COVID19 mitigation and vaccine uptake

Project summary: 

The overall vision of the partnership is to design an evidence-based, audience specific, and contextually relevant community engagement actions to strengthen COVID-19 vaccine uptake amongst children 5 to under 12 years, and promote booster dose uptake in Bideha Municipality of Dhanusha district.

Funding partner: Save The Children

Project Duration: 14^th August 2022 to December 2022

Objectives: 

1. Generate adequate evidence and social norms insight to inform the ongoing vaccination uptake interventions
2. Promote evidence-based and age-appropriate COVID-19 vaccine-related interventions to the communities to overcome the barrier to vaccine uptake
3. Strengthen the capacity of stakeholders relevant in promoting COVID-19 vaccines (child and youth club and local government counterparts) to design, develop, and monitor strategic RCCE efforts and implement community-focused and need-based interventions by the end of December 2022
4. Address rumors and misconceptions about COVID-19 vaccines and increase vaccination uptake to 4% by the end of December 2022 based on the current vaccination status

Project Location: Bideha Palika, Dhanusha

Key Activities:

1. Baseline on COVID-19 vaccination of children, and booster uptake data in Bideha Municipality
2. Context reporting on social norms, socio-political barriers to COVID-19 vaccination
3. Coordination with local palika and local government to implement proposed COVID-19 vaccine promotion actions
4. Risk Communications and Community Engagement (RCCE) training to youth and child club members
5. Conduct Awareness on the Wheels (AoW) campaign
6. Door-to-Door engagement program in coordination with child and youth club members, FCHVs, and health officials
7. Establishment of Community Information Points (CIP) and develop referral pathway monitoring
8. Organize mobile vaccine clinics in coordination with health officials, school management committee, and local government in target palika
9. Conduct an endline survey to understand the reach, resonance, and impact of the community engagement actions