The “Together Against Influenza” vaccination campaign has been launched across Ulaanbaatar and will run for one month until October 3. Last year, around 146,000 residents of the capital received influenza vaccines, reducing their risk of contracting the flu by 13 percent. This year, the city plans to provide free vaccinations to 293,619 people in high-risk target groups, including children aged zero to six, pregnant women, senior citizens and people with chronic underlying conditions.

N.Naranbaatar, director of the Ulaanbaatar Health Department, said that 106,912 cases of influenza were recorded in the capital last year, with children aged zero to six accounting for up to half of all cases. “There are approximately 230,000 children aged zero to six living in the capital, and we aim to vaccinate around 210,000 of them, or more than 80 percent,” he said. N.Naranbaatar also said, “Influenza activity typically begins to increase from mid-October. Therefore, we aim to vaccinate residents before infections begin to rise significantly.”

According to N.Naranbaatar, immunity develops within 10 to 14 days after vaccination, providing protection against influenza infection. Fully vaccinating the targeted high-risk groups could reduce the risks associated with influenza by up to 75 percent. Residents can receive the influenza vaccine free of charge by visiting their nearest family health clinic or health center.

For this year’s campaign, the authorities selected a four-strain influenza vaccine manufactured in South Korea and recommended by the World Health Organization. With government funding, 500,000 doses of the vaccine have been procured through the United Nations Children’s Fund.