Immunization for all: Mongolia’s drive to protect every child

As the afternoon sun shone high over Zamiin-Uud soum in southeastern Mongolia, a healthcare team made its way across a dusty trail toward a local neighbourhood home. There, a grandmother waited with her granddaughter in her arms, ready for the child’s second dose of the measles, mumps, and rubella (MMR) vaccine as well as the second dose of the hepatitis A vaccine, scheduled for age two. The little girl was brave and didn’t cry. Her grandmother smiled proudly.

“She couldn’t visit the health centre in time, so she requested home vaccination,” said Dr. Dashpagam, Head of the Immunization Department at the National Center for Communicable Diseases (NCCD). “This is how we make sure no child is left behind.”

“I’m very pleased to see such dedicated healthcare workers visiting homes to ensure that every child is vaccinated,” added Dr. Socorro Escalante, WHO Representative to Mongolia. “These are the public health interventions that save lives and secure our future.”

This home visit, replicated across the country for families unable to reach health centres, captures the spirit of World Immunization Week (WIW) 2025 in Mongolia: bringing life-saving vaccines to every family, wherever they are, and building public trust through commitment and community presence.

A strong foundation, rebuilding trust

Mongolia’s Expanded Programme on Immunization (EPI) has long been a success story. Even through the COVID-19 pandemic, the country maintained routine immunization coverage above 95%, thanks to strong primary health care integration, community outreach, and support from partners like WHO, UNICEF, and Gavi.

However, widespread misinformation and disinformation have shaken public confidence in vaccine safety and efficacy. This erosion of trust was evident during the rollout of the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine in 2024. Despite a national target of 75% coverage among 11-year-old boys and girls by year’s end, the campaign reached only 55.1% of the target group, with even lower coverage in certain provinces.

In response, the Ministry of Health and its partners launched a strategic shift in 2025. The new approach focuses on strengthening the capacity of healthcare workers and deepening community engagement to rebuild trust.

World Immunization Week (WIW) 2025 kicked off with a media briefing, where health leaders addressed public concerns and shared evidence-based information about vaccines. Community outreach events have been organized nationwide. At these events, trusted leaders and health professionals met with parents and grandparents to share information, answer questions, and address concerns.

“I have 11-year-old twin grandsons,” said a grandmother at an outreach event in Dornogovi. “Now I understand how HPV vaccination protects their future. I want them to be vaccinated.”

“To improve HPV vaccine coverage, we must strengthen communication, awareness, and training efforts,” emphasized Dr. D. Bayarbold, Head of the Division of Communicable Diseases at the Ministry of Health. “We’re working to restore confidence - one conversation at a time.”

Bringing healthcare services to Mongolia’s most remote families

Throughout WIW and into May’s National Immunization Days, joint teams from the Ministry of Health, NCCD, and WHO conducted field missions to provinces with lower vaccination coverage – Dornogovi, Govisumber, and Bayan-Ulgii. The missions aimed to provide technical support to strengthen routine immunization coverage, with a particular focus on HPV vaccination and measles outbreak response.

The mission teams met with local leaders and health authorities, visited provincial and soum health centres, trained health workers, and supported outreach events. These efforts were especially urgent amid a measles outbreak, with over 7000 confirmed cases as of June 2025, primarily affecting secondary schools in Ulaanbaatar.

Providing updates on the measles response and HPV vaccination, Dr. Battsetseg, Head of Dornogovi’s Department of Health, emphasized the importance of the mission’s guidance.

“These discussions are vital to intensifying immunization efforts and ensuring the readiness of our services,” she said. “We want to exceed the national average and protect our communities.”

In the windswept steppe of Govisumber province, Tserenchunt, a mother of three, shared her experience.  

“During the busiest herding season, when we are caring for newborn animals, our family centre comes to us,” she said. “That makes life so much easier. Our kids get vaccinated on time and rarely get sick. I tell all parents: please vaccinate your children on time.”

Her message reflects the challenges Mongolia faces in ensuring equitable vaccine access across its vast and sparsely populated land. But with mobile teams, improved cold chain systems, and tailored microplanning, the country is closing those gaps.

All routine vaccines are provided free of charge, and families can access them at the nearest soum or family health centre. With more than 600 immunization units nationwide, children who miss routine doses are reached through mobile outreach.

A whole-system response

The Government of Mongolia, through its National Plan on the Prevention and Control of Communicable Diseases 2022-2025, is intensifying efforts to improve vaccine uptake and build a resilient immunization system.

“Vaccination strengthens the core foundation of health systems and community resilience – preventing diseases, building collective immunity, easing healthcare burdens, strengthening health security and safeguarding well-being for all,” said Dr. Socorro Escalante, WHO Representative to Mongolia.

“WHO continues to guide countries on vaccination strategies and provide technical support on integration of immunization services into primary health care to close immunization gaps and health disparities.”

WHO, with Gavi’s financial support, has supported the development of the national HPV vaccine deployment plan, microplans, risk and crisis management tools, and healthcare worker training resources. To date, ten technical trainings have been delivered nationwide.

Beyond the initial rollout, WHO supports the HPV vaccine post-introduction evaluation (PIE) to ensure that programmes are continuously monitored and improved for sustainable impact.

In Mongolia, the mission to protect every child through immunization continues well beyond World and National Immunization Weeks. With strong government leadership, dedicated healthcare workers, and empowered communities, Mongolia is steadily advancing toward “Immunization for all”. 

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This story was originally published on the WHO Mongolia website, where you can learn more about the WHO's work for advancing health in Mongolia.