Lets admit that when it comes to handling the Coronavirus and keeping the pandemic under control, no nation has accomplish this better than China. After taming the beast, the Kingdom is now on an aggressive vaccination program in a bid to probably inoculate its whole 1.4 billion citizen or at least 70% by the end of the year- a mammoth task but would we dare to doubt them from failing?
So, how will China roll out this campaign and what are their strategies they will be deploying, this is on the backdrop of how we in Malaysia are even struggling in getting our registration numbers pass the targeted ratio.
Perhaps our Ministries and the task force in charge of the National Covid-19 Immunisation Program (NCIP) could take some tips and get our initiatives on track of its targets. The Middle Kingdom has many innovative methods in place to get its people protected and this includes the rural community, for instance to get into the rural areas where the possible internet connectivity could be slow and thwart registration, the Chinese are using mobile clinics fully equipped with vaccines and doctors. This program involves both public and private entities equipped with state of the art technology, where 5G and big data is used to its full potential. The vehicles have facilities such as computers, refrigerators and air conditioners to ensure the convenience, safety and reliability during the vaccination process. Technology is employed to manage vaccination with digital means and ensure the traceability of the whole process.
With 142 million doses already administered, Beijing plans to vaccinate 560 million or 40% by June this year, this will expedite cross border travels within the mainland. The plan is also to issue a “health code” system enabling travelers to move out of China for instance to Hong Kong or Macau by showing the blockchain enabled system. At the same time China is going on a massive education drive to get more information out as hesitance continue to remain the biggest stumbling block for the program.
Unlike UK or Israel where the per capita immunisation is at high levels, Asian countries will face various hurdles due to stigma and fear, religious beliefs and lack of information will cause much problem to the agencies tasked for the mass roll out. China did encounter this initially, however with a well crafted communication strategy the sceptics are being converted every day. With vaccination, peoples movement will become less restricted, businesses will have less fear of being shut down due to infections, borders could be opened and foreign countries will start accepting travelers again. The pros surely outweighs the cons.
In Malaysia the education and communication level has been weak, even city dwellers are hesitant to get vaccinated due to myths and fear mongering by unscrupulous groups on social media. The NCIP program might not meet its target and fall short of expectation, this will be detrimental for an open economy like ours. Science and Technology Minister Khairy Jamaluddin is aware of the situation and has options up his sleeve to solve the predicament. As of now Selangor is still the highest state with registration at above 40% levels while Sabah continues to remain the lowest at 12% with Phase 2 about to kick off very soon.
If Malaysia is ambitious in meeting its targets it needs to get to the people rather that wait for the people come to the centres. Mobile units with all the necessary equipment’s should be deployed to rural and hard to reach areas, technology like AI, Big Data and high speed wireless broadband can come in useful in gathering insights. Incentive programs with eWallet players can further encourage fence sitters and the younger target segment. High profile and respected individuals like Dr Noor Hashim can be the spokesperson for NCIP, going on roadshows or on National Television daily talking about Covid-19 vaccination and demystifying all the myths popping up everyday. This was successful during MCO 1.0 where everyone abided by the Government’s guidelines, we could achieve this cooperation on a national level one again.
Cleary more needs to be done on the program, and we just have to look East to learn.
