While on her trip to Bangladesh, Crown Princess Mary took the time to publish a statement to mark the World Health Organisation’s Immunisation Week.
Her Royal Highness has long been a champion of vaccinations and has been a representative for the WHO since 2005, when she became honorary patron of the European branch of the organisation.
Since then, the Crown Princess has supported many of their campaigns, including one against obesity. But the vaccination issue remained one of the ones closest to her heart.
In her statement, the future Queen of Denmark remarked on the importance of vaccinations in saving lives, especially in young children, saying: “More and more children have been protected from polio, measles and rubella have been largely eliminated, we have reduced the potential causes of pneumonia in young children and invested in a cervical cancer-free future for girls.”
But she also highlighted how increasingly difficult it has become to make the vaccination message heard: “The pandemic has also amplified misinformation, confusing the public about the safety and effectiveness of not just COVID-19 vaccines but other routine vaccines as well.”
She also remarked on how the Ukrainian crisis has impacted vaccinations, especially for young children, and how the potential for danger that comes from exposing unvaccinated children to disease is only one of the many challenges that Ukrainian refugees are facing.
However, the Crown Princess concluded her statement with hopeful and encouraging words: “Let us build on their efforts and incredible innovations by moving forward on immunization. Let us remember that vaccines provide more opportunity for healthy and #longlivesforall.”
The latter is the hashtag that the WHO has launched to promote Immunisation Week, a reference to how the scientific progress on vaccines, which the Crown Princess also praised in her words, allows people to avoid contracting potentially deadly diseases and live longer and healthier lives.
Undoubtedly, her stay in Bangladesh during immunisation week will have an impact on Crown Princess Mary, as the country is one of the poorest and most densely populated in the world, making vaccine access difficult. Diseases spread easy, especially when combined with limited access to sustainable natural resources like clean water, a topic that is the focus of her current trip.
The statement in full can be read here.
