Yellow fever vaccination campaign in Democratic Republic of the Congo: Logistics pathway

The biggest emergency yellow fever vaccination campaign ever held in Africa is underway in Democratic Republic of the Congo. With high risk of transmission of the mosquito-borne disease in the densely populated capital city of Kinshasa, the vaccination campaign aims to protect as many people at risk as possible and stop the outbreak before the rainy season begins in late September.

The logistics to vaccinate more than 10.5 million people in 32 health zones in Kinshasa provinces and 15 health zones in remote areas bordering Angola, has been a complex and challenging logistical undertaking. WHO has deployed 15 logisticians to plan and transport more than 10 million syringes, vaccine doses in more than 38 000 vaccine carriers by truck, car, motorcycle, by boat and often by foot to the targeted 8000 vaccination sites, many of them in remote and hard to reach areas.

In Kinshasa, the vaccines and supplies arrive and are loaded into trucks to be dispatched to where they are needed. It will take some of these trucks more than two days to arrive at destination some as far as 2000 km away. Here WHO and World Food Programme logisticians supervise the dangerous waste collected from the vaccination sites before it is transported by specially trained and equipped teams to mass incinerators outside the city. More than 80 tonnes of waste will be disposed of during this campaign.

This truck, filled with syringes, waste disposal safety boxes, cool boxes and other equipment vital to the yellow fever vaccination campaign on the Angolan border, has broken down 40 km from Kenge in Kwango province, a full day’s drive from Kinshasa, the capital. But there are still 600 km of difficult road ahead before the last of these supplies reach their final destination at vaccination sites along the border. Together with the health authorities here in Kwango Province, WHO organises for the first of the supplies to be unloaded from the truck and packed into quickly-mobilised jeeps.

As the reloading continues, spare parts for the broken down vehicle are also on their way. Delivering all the supplies for a vaccination campaign is a complex challenge in Democratic Republic of the Congo. This is one of the few paved roads on the journey to the target vaccination sites, and sturdy vehicles are needed to navigate much of the difficult terrain. In some areas, deliveries can only be made by boat and small plane.

The first jeep is fully loaded and sets off to drop supplies at the first vaccination point on the Angolan border. By nightfall, the truck has been mended and is able to continue on its way, driving through the night to ensure that the vaccination supplies needed to end this outbreak of yellow fever are safely delivered.