Vaccination coverage baseline survey among internally displaced children in Buhima and Mugunga health areas of Goma and Karisimbi health zones, Nord-Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) 2024

The purpose of the study is to assess the operational impact, feasibility, and acceptability, of the rollout of R21 malaria vaccine (children 5-36 months), and age-targeted intermittent preventative treatment in children (IPTc) with Dihydroartemisinin-Piperaquine (DHA-PQ) (children aged 3-59 months) as additional components to the existing malaria prevention package in Kule refugee camp where malaria incidence remains high despite vector control measures. Additionally, this study seeks to add to the knowledge base of extending malaria control interventions to new contexts, since existing evidence combining malaria vaccines, which protect against only P. falciparum infections, with chemoprevention programmes have only integrated with Seasonal Malaria Chemoprevention (SMC.) Hence this study will also provide understanding of the impact of combining an Artemisinin Combination Treatment (ACT) with a long half-life (DHA-PQ) which is effective against both P. falciparum (Pf) and Plasmodium vivax (Pv), alongside the R21 vaccine, thereby giving longer-lasting protection against Pf infections in a region prone to outbreaks.

The purpose of the study is to estimate the vaccination coverage in the target population in order to forecast future outbreaks in Bentiu IDP camp, and to provide lessons learned for better planning and implementation of prospective vaccination campaigns.