Step 1: Understand your context

Capture these key insights in your strategic template.

  • Understanding the contextual barriers to vaccine uptake is a critical first step when developing vaccine communications. While structural barriers –like vaccine shortages or challenges accessing clinics–cannot be remedied through communication alone, there are things we can do to increase awareness of when and how to get vaccinated. 
  • When looking to shift vaccine attitudes, it is important to not assume hesitancy. Instead, seek to identify the specific questions, concerns and info gaps that people have so that you can tailor your communications in response.
  • What vaccination data sources exist in your context to help you better understand the reasons for under-vaccination? Consider drawing on immunization data, published literature, household survey results, UNICEF Country office reports and relevant online and community-based feedback channels, to understand the drivers that are affecting vaccination decisions.
  • What appear to be the key barriers to greater immunization? What other contextual or cultural considerations are important to keep in mind as you develop your vaccine communication campaign (and how might these impact your target audiences)?

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