It was at Ruhaha health center in Bugesera district that the Health Minister, Dr. Richard Sezibera, administered the first vaccination to baby Clementine Byakusenge, daughter of Beatrice Muramurama.

Although it was not to her liking, baby Clementine got the honor to get the first vaccine. (photo Timothy Kisambira)

He added that with the introduction of the vaccine, the goal of significantly reducing child deaths would now be within their reach.

Pneumococcal disease can cause potentially life-threatening illness such as pneumonia, meningitis and sepsis, and is the leading vaccine-preventable killer of children younger than five worldwide.

 “We applaud the Rwandan government for taking this step, and we are proud to join them in launching a new era in the delivery of vaccine designed to close the gap between rich and poor countries and reduce child mortality throughout the developing world,” said Dr Julian Lob-Levyt the Chief Executive Officer of the Global Alliance for Vaccine and Immunization (GAVI). “If fully rolled out in the GAVI countries, the pneumococcal vaccine could save the lives of more than 440,000 children by 2015. This would help achieve the millennium development goal 4.”

More than 3 million doses of the vaccine, Prevenar, were donated through GAVI to Rwanda and the Gambia by the pharmaceutical company Wythe. Experience in the United States and other countries has shown that it results in lasting reductions in preventable illness and deaths among children.

In order to make sure that the costly vaccines are properly preserved, a cold room and cold chain equipment has been set up.

While 35 high income countries, including South Africa, currently provide routine childhood immunization against pneumococcal diseases, the introduction of the vaccine in Rwanda signals a new era in vaccine access and delivery in the developing world.

“Pneumonia is the number one cause of child mortality in Rwanda, responsible for nearly 1in 4 deaths of children under the age of 5 years,” according to a statement from the World Health Organization.

It further states that based on vaccine efficacy countries done, in Gambia and other countries and the estimated pneumococcal disease burden in Rwanda as well as the projected vaccine coverage for Africa, routine use of the vaccine is expected to be a cost saving investment for Rwanda.

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