Social media giant Facebook partnered with ICT (information and communication technology) division and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, Bangladesh on vaccine rollout and nationwide awareness campaign.
The campaign has aimed to increase people’s uptake of inhibitory health practices along with vaccination intent in the country.
Facebook has intended to take several steps to holistically support vaccine rollout as well as the countrywide awareness campaign towards safe hygiene practices, particularly given the recent surge in Covid-19 cases.
The platform, which is also available on local language in Bangla, will make it easier for people to access credible information and best practices on preventive hygiene measures. It also contains modules on mental health and vaccine safety and provides easy access to http://www.corona.gov.bd for the latest Bangladesh governmental directives.
Facebook will direct people to register on http://www.surokkha.gov.bd for the Covid-19 vaccine and poke to continue wearing masks, through News Feed notifications. The social media platform launched a public education campaign (www.fightCovidmisinfo.com) on World Health Day.
Its motto is to help Bangladeshis learn how to identify and combat false information about Covid-19 and related health measures. The public education modules are available on local language in Bangla to ensure that it is more relatable and practical to Bangladeshi people.
“As Bangladesh is seeing a significant spike in Covid-19 cases like many parts of the world, it’s reassuring to see how health awareness and safe vaccination efforts have been ramped up to reach more people in the country,” said Sabhanaz Rashid Diya, who leads Public Policy for Bangladesh at Facebook.
“We are committed to do our part to help Bangladeshis access credible information, adopt safe health practices, get vaccinated and come together as a community, By working closely with the national health agencies and public health experts, and using Facebook’s scale and speed to reach people ” said added.
In Bangladesh, Facebook has been working closely with the ICT Division and the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare of Bangladesh throughout the pandemic to increase awareness on Covid-19 preventive health practices, the press release noted.
Anir Chowdhury, policy advisor of the a2i (Aspire to Innovate) Programme, ICT Division and Cabinet Division, and UNDP Bangladesh, said, “I would like to thank Facebook for taking this broad measure and we are delighted to be part of this campaign to promote vaccination, mask wearing, and social distancing to a much greater population.”
Facebook has globally connected over 2 billion people to resources from health authorities through the Covid-19 Information Center. Facebook has already removed more than 12 million pieces of harmful misinformation about Covid-19 and approved vaccines from its family of apps.
** Writer :: Ashik Ul Haque is a freelance journalist, author, researcher, digital entrepreneur, IT analyst, and e-Business strategist.