Six-month-old Jemelyn Koga from Kokoda in Northern Province was one of 226 children to receive live-saving vaccinations during a regular Maternal and Child Health (MCH) patrol supported by the Australian Government through the Kokoda Initiative Partnership.
For communities across the remote and rugged terrain of the Kokoda Track, access to essential services such as healthcare and education remains a challenge.
Australia, through the Kokoda Initiative Partnership, is working with provincial health authorities to ensure communities can access essential health services.
Over 200 boys and girls received injections for Vitamin A supplements and immunisations for pneumococcal disease, polio, measles-rubella, tuberculosis and other preventable illnesses.
For Jemelyn’s grandmother, Ms Jagja Bepi, having health services delivered closer to home made a significant difference.
“Our village is just a 20-minute walk from here [the health patrol site] so I am very thankful. I visited the hospital earlier in the year and was told to wait because there were no medicines,” she said.
Through the PNGAus Partnership, 1,195 community members living along the Kokoda Track region safely accessed essential healthcare services during the first half of this year, helping ensure children receive routine immunisation on time and strengthening healthcare access for remote communities.
Australia, in partnership with Papua New Guinea, is committed to improving health, education and economic opportunities for people living along the Kokoda Track, while supporting the reservation of the region’s unique environment and military heritage for future generations.
ENDS
(Right) Ms Jegja Bepi holding her 6-month-old granddaughter Jemelyn Koga as she's being vaccinated during the MCH Patrol in Kokoda, Northern Province.
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