Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what assessment her Department has made of the scale of anti-vaccination fake news in (a) Pakistan and (b) Afghanistan.

We are concerned about anti vaccination messaging on social media, and the further impact this can have, including in Afghanistan and Pakistan. These “fake news” messages have the potential to spread more rapidly and widely than traditional routes.

Our emphasis has been on our own positive messaging, and supporting the Global Polio Eradication Initiative (GPEI) and Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance to understand anti-vaccine sentiment at a local level and the root causes of concerns. These organisations use a range of tools to monitor this – including population surveys, media and social media monitoring and through community dialogue. In both Pakistan and Afghanistan, health organisations have developed strategies to increase acceptance and demand for vaccination, which includes community engagement and trust-building, regular national assessment of vaccine concerns, and crisis response planning.