The Lancet: Looking beyond the Decade of Vaccines
Editorial Board

“When in 2010 the global health community declared the so-called Decade of Vaccines, it marked a path towards an ambitious vision for 2020: a world in which all individuals and communities enjoy lives free from vaccine-preventable diseases. … The Decade of Vaccines has indeed been formidable, fostering partnerships and accelerating progress. But in the current social and political climate, perhaps it is time to reevaluate. A systems-driven approach putting more power in the hands of the countries will allow for the design of vaccination programs tailored to the cultural specificities of their populations. A stronger involvement of the social sciences in programs could help strengthen the collective understanding of vaccine hesitancy. Vaccine development must be accelerated and greater impetus should be put behind better use of existing vaccines. Moving forward, the global health community will need to shift its focus: after the Decade of Vaccines, more muscular efforts must be made to integrate investments in immunization services into programs for universal health coverage” (11/17).