UNICEF in partnership with Shikhar organized the Second National Urdu Editors’ Conference on Routine Immunization in the capital today.
The day long brainstorming focused on how various stakeholders including media can highlight the importance of vaccination for saving children’s lives. Several eminent Urdu editors, doctors including Unani medicine practitioners and academicians attended the meet.
While India has one of the largest immunization programs in the world, (in terms of number of number of children covered and geographical reach), it still reports deaths of about 1.4 million children (below the age of five years) annually. These deaths are largely from preventable diseases such as pneumonia, diarrhoea, malnutrition and new born complications like sepsis. A highly cost-effective way of preventing these fatal diseases is Routine Immunization, which is one of the most successful public health initiatives and can prevent around 400,000 child deaths each year in India alone.
The round table was organized ahead of the World Immunization Week, and the theme for this year’s edition is “Are you up to date?” which is a direct appeal to parents and caregivers to inform themselves about immunization and make sure that their families are protected with vaccines. The conference highlighted the need to reach unimmunized children in hard-to-reach areas and belonging to vulnerable communities. It also dwelt on strategies to increase in-depth coverage and analysis articles by the media on Routine Immunization (RI).
Dr. Khwaja Ikramuddin, Director, National Council for Promotion of Urdu Language and Ms Caroline Den Dulk, Chief of Communication, UNICEF India opened the discussions and the experts included Mr.Syed Faisal Ali, Editor, Almi Sahara, Mr.Shakeel Akhtar, Bureau Chief, BBC Urdu, Mr. Yusuf Ansari, Editor Channel One, Mr.Wasim ul Haq, Editor, Akhbare Mashriq, Ms.Waseem Rasheed, Editor, Chauthi Duniya, and Mr. Khalid Anwar,Editor Hamara Samaj.
Addressing the gathering, Mr S.M.Khan, Director General, DD News, called for a collaborative effort by various media to ensure a 360 degree coverage of health issues including RI. He said that Doordarshan’s vast network and use of easy-to-understand Urdu language in its programs, could be leveraged to reach out to migrants and populations in difficult-to-reach regions. Giving a commitment on behalf of the Urdu editors to ensure better and informed coverage of RI nationally, Mr Khan emphasized on the need to empower the journalists’ to cover RI in a more sustained manner.
Dr. Khwaja Ikramuddin, Director NCPUL urged Urdu media houses to regularly come out with news reports and editorials on immunization among minorities. He said that inadequate number of health journalists and their lack of in-depth knowledge on the issue, are a deterrent in ensuring coverage of such topics.
Participants emphasized that use of local language can reinforce instant message recall and brand recognition of immunization and child survival, as is the case of the RI tagline Bhool Na Jana Tika Lagwana.
Emphasizing UNICEF’s focus on equity, Ms Caroline Den Dulk, said, “ All children have the right to survive and thrive and vaccines protect children for a lifetime. This World Immunization Week we are partnering with diverse stakeholders to keep the focus on reaching out to the most vulnerable and marginalized children. Radio and Urdu media play a significant role in strengthening these efforts”
Participating in the deliberations, Prof Akhtrul Wasay, Commissioner for Linguistic Minorities said, “We cannot expect to create massive awareness on this critical child survival issue without active participation of diverse stakeholders including the media, academic institutions, young people and other opinion leaders.”
It was decided at the conference that several capacity-building workshops would be organized from time to time for the Urdu journalists to help them be equipped with in-depth knowledge and thereby come up with write ups, editorials and edutainment based television programs on RI.
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