WHAT: High-level launch and Youth Engagement Session to launch the AU COVID-19 Vaccination Bingwa Initiative

 WHEN: Thursday, 7th April 2022,

High-Level launch: 10:00 - 16:00 (EAT)  

Youth Engagement Session: 13:00 – 14:30 (EAT) 

WHO: African Union Commission: Women, Gender and Youth Directorate, Africa Centres for Disease Control

Speakers:

H.E. Moussa Faki Mahamat – Chairperson AUC

Ambassador Fathallah Sijilmassi - Director General, AUC

Dr. John Nkengasong, Director General, Africa CDC

Ms. Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director

Dr. Matshidiso Moeti, WHO Africa Regional Director

Mrs. Birgit Pickel – Africa Director, Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, Germany

Ms. Chido Cleopatra Mpemba - AUC Chairperson’s Youth Envoy

Mr. Francesco Rocca, President of the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)

Ms. Julie Gichuru, Chief Public Affairs and Communications, Mastercard Foundation Leadership

WHERE: The High-Level launch event and the Youth Engagement Session will both be held virtually via Zoom

High-Level launch registration link: https://bit.ly/HighLevelBingwaLaunch

Youth Session registration link: https://bit.ly/BingwaYouthSession

BACKGROUND

Motivated by H.E. President Cyril Ramaphosa, who called for innovative ways to scale up vaccinations across the continent, an African Union public-private-youth initiative co-led by Africa CDC and the Women, Gender and Youth Directorate through the Youth Division has been conceptualized under the name “AU COVID-19 Vaccination Bingwa Initiative”. The initiative seeks to establish a network of COVID-19 vaccination youth champions across the continent to accelerate the uptake of COVID-19 vaccination in Africa. The initiative is co-sponsored and jointly implemented by the Africa Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (Africa CDC) and the Youth Division (YD) of the African Union Commission, and seeks to leverage the comparative advantage of two key AU initiatives: Saving Lives and Livelihood (SLL) and 1 Million Next Level initiatives of the African Union Commission.

It is against this background that the Women, Gender and Youth Directorate in partnership with Africa CDC organized a Partners’ Forum on the 17th of March to present the initiative and share the areas for potential support needed from partners to accelerate implementation across the continent. The initiative will be launched at a High-Level event on the 7th of April where partners and dignitaries will be present and will be followed by an afternoon youth engagement session where African superstar Yemi Alade will share a statement of support to engage African youth on operationalising the initiative.  

HOW TO PARTICIPATE

Journalists are invited to cover the two launch events

High-Level launch registration link: https://bit.ly/HighLevelBingwaLaunch

Youth Session registration link: https://bit.ly/BingwaYouthSession  

NOTE TO EDITORS

About the AU COVID-19 Vaccination Bingwa Initiative

It is an African Union public-private-youth initiative co-led by Africa CDC and the Women, Gender and Youth Directorate through the Youth Division. The initiative seeks to establish a network of COVID-19 vaccination youth champions across the continent to accelerate the uptake of coronavirus vaccination in Africa. Specifically, the initiative seeks to:

• Create a network of Bingwas,

• Make a direct attributable contribution to vaccinating at least 100 million Africans including 70 million youth, and

• Make an indirect contribution to bridging the 760 million vaccination gap in Africa by increasing demand for coronavirus vaccinations.

The Bingwas initiative will be youth-led, and youth focused. It will be results-focused, and thus contribute to the speed and at-scale delivery of Coronavirus vaccinations in AU member states. The initiative will combine advocacy and service delivery activities, acknowledging the need to adapt to different countries and communities needs and contexts, and that one-size-fits-all approach will not work. The initiative will invest in youth engagement and empowerment, and shared value partnerships, underpinned by the principles of different comparative advantages, co-creation, co-learning, co-evolving, collective impact and mutual accountability

For further media inquiries, please contact:  

Ms. Nontobeko Tshabalala, Communications, AUC Youth Division, Email: Tel: +251 115 517 700 | E-mail: NontobekoT@africa-union.org | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Mr. G. Nekerwon Gweh, Communications Officer, Africa CDC,

Tel: +251 115 517 700 | E-mail: GwehN@africa.union.org | Addis Ababa, Ethiopia