How can we better engage communities for vaccination in LMICs?

Community engagement has become a critical piece of the puzzle in improving vaccine uptake, especially in humanitarian settings. But while many tools exist to foster trust, manage misinformation, and promote accountability, gaps remain - both in evidence and in practical resources for those working on the ground.

To address this, the PULSE project has mapped publicly available tools used for vaccination campaigns in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) to better understand what’s available, what’s missing, and how we can equip practitioners to lead effective, community-driven vaccination efforts.

Key Insights from the Mapping

The PULSE review identified 14 core tools (and several sub-tools) focused mostly on COVID-19 vaccination. These fell into four main categories:

1. Normative Guidelines: Principles and frameworks, like those from IFRC, to ensure community-centered approaches in vaccination campaigns.
2. Operational Tools: Ready-to-use resources, such as monitoring templates and behavior-change strategies for health workers.
3. Feedback Mechanisms: Tools for collecting and analysing community input to improve vaccination efforts.
4. Misinformation Management: Apps, Q&A templates, and strategies to counter vaccine hesitancy and misinformation.

Despite these resources, there’s a noticeable gap in tools that empower communities to take a more active role - such as those that build trust, engage local leaders, or enable shared decision-making.

Community engagement

Strengthening community engagement goes beyond delivering information. It’s about creating partnerships with communities, addressing barriers like access and supply, and ensuring people feel heard and involved.

This new mapping tool highlights opportunities to adapt existing tools and create new resources that focus on these broader goals.

To suggest additional tools or resources, please email us.