Child Vaccinations in Ghana: Which Children Benefit from the National Vaccination Days Campaigns?

C. Joy Msiska, Indiana University
Dominique Meekers, Tulane University

To reduce child mortality rates, the government of Ghana conducts both routine and supplemental immunization activities. National Immunization Day (NID) campaigns aim to address gaps in routine child immunization coverage by providing vaccinations to children who were not reached by routine vaccination services. While vaccination coverage has improved considerably since the start of biannual NID campaign, these improvements have not been consistent. This implies that the NID campaigns – although invaluable – have not been able to completely fill the gaps in routine vaccination coverage. This study analyzes data from the 2008 Ghana Demographic and Health Survey to examine the factors that affected participation in two recent NID campaigns. The results suggest that about one third of children aged 6-23 months participated in each campaign. However, children from wealthier backgrounds appear to have higher participation rates than children from more disadvantaged backgrounds.