Jim Dobbin – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Department for International Development

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Jim Dobbin on 2014-05-02.

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps she is taking to ensure that her Department’s vaccination programmes reach children with disabilities.

Lynne Featherstone

The UK is a leading advocate for vaccination coverage that ensures that the poorest and most vulnerable groups, including those with disability, have access to essential vaccines. The UK funds the GAVI Alliance, the Global Polio Eradication Initiative and the Measles and Rubella Initiative to conduct supplemental immunisation activities, specifically targeting children who are outside the routine immunisation service delivery system.

The UK’s goal on immunisations is that every child is fully immunised with equitable coverage of core vaccines. In 2011, the UK committed over four years to vaccinate over 80 million children against preventable diseases, including diseases which can lead to disability, through the GAVI Alliance. DFID’s 2014 Annual Report shows we are on track to meet this commitment.